RESUMEN
Continuous tuning of the backbone conformation and interchain distance of a π-conjugated polymer is an essential prerequisite to unveil the inherent electrical and optical features of organic electronics. To this end, applying pressure in a hydrostatic medium or diamond anvil cell is a facile approach without the need for side-chain synthetic engineering. We report the development of high-pressure, time-resolved microwave conductivity (HP-TRMC) and evaluation of transient photoconductivity in the regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) film and its bulk heterojunction blend with methanofullerene (PCBM). X-ray diffraction experiments under high pressure were performed to detail the pressure dependence of π-stacking and interlamellar distances in P3HT crystallites and PCBM aggregates. The HP-TRMC results were further correlated with high-pressure Raman spectroscopy and density functional theory calculation. The increased HP-TRMC conductivity of P3HT under pressure was found to be relevant to the planarity of the backbone conformation and intramolecular hole mobility. The effects of pressure on the backbone planarity are estimated to be â¼0.3 kJ mol(-1) based on the compressibility derived from the X-ray diffraction under high pressure, suggesting the high enough energy to cause modulation of the planarity in terms of the Landau-de Gennes free energy of isolated P3HT chains as 0.23 kJ mol(-1). In contrast, the P3HT:PCBM blend showed a simple decrease in photoconductivity irrespective of the identical compressive behavior of P3HT. A mechanistic insight into the interplay of intra- and intermolecular mobilities is a key to tailoring the dynamic π-figuration associated with electrical properties, which may lead to the use of HP-TRMC for exploring divergent π-conjugated materials at the desired molecular arrangement and conformation.
RESUMEN
Formation dynamics of intramolecular excimer in dioxa[3.3](3,6)carbazolophane (CzOCz) was studied by time-resolved spectroscopic methods and computational calculations. In the ground state, the most stable conformer in CzOCz is the anti-conformation where two carbazole rings are in antiparallel alignment. No other isomers were observed even after the solution was heated up to 150 °C, although three characteristic isomers were found by the molecular mechanics calculation: the first is the anti-conformer, the second is the syn-conformer where two carbazole rings are stacked in the same direction, and the third is the int-conformer where two carbazole rings are aligned in an edge-to-face geometry. Because of the anti-conformation, the interchromophoric interaction in CzOCz is negligible in the ground state. Nonetheless, the intramolecular excimer in CzOCz was dynamically formed in an acetonitrile (MeCN) solution, indicating strong interchromophoric interaction and the isomerization from the anti- to syn-conformation in the excited state. The excimer formation in CzOCz is more efficient in polar solvents than in less polar solvents, suggesting the contribution of the charge transfer (CT) state to the excimer formation. The stabilization in the excited state is discussed in terms of molecular orbital interaction between two carbazole rings. The solvent-polarity-induced excimer formation is discussed in terms of the CT character in the int-conformation.