Changing molecular band offsets in polymer blends of (P3HT/P(VDF–TrFE)) poly(3-hexylthiophene) and poly(vinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene) due to ferroelectric poling

Authors

Freddy Wong, University of Puerto Rico-Humacao, University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras
Godohaldo Perez, University of Puerto Rico-Humacao
Manuel Bonilla, University of Puerto Rico-Humacao
Juan A. Colon-Santana, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Xin Zhang, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Pankaj Sharma, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Alexei Gruverman, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Peter A. Dowben, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Luis G. Rosa, University of Puerto Rico-Humacao, University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Date of this Version

2013

Citation

RSC Adv., 2014, 4, 3020; doi: 10.1039/c3ra43993c

Comments

Copyright © 2014 The Royal Society of Chemistry. Used by permission.

Abstract

Photoelectron emission and inverse photoemission spectroscopy studies of polymer blends of poly(vinylidene fluoride (70%) – trifluoroethylene (30%)) P(VDF–TrFE 70 : 30) and regio-regular poly(3- hexylthiophene) (P3HT) provide evidence of changes in the molecular band offsets as a result of changes in the ferroelectric polarization in P(VDF–TrFE). Investigation of the blends with higher concentrations of the semiconducting P3HT component revealed that the organic semiconductor component of the blend dominates the electronic structure in the vicinity of the chemical potential. Specifically, the states of P3HT at the conduction band minimum and valence band maximum fall within the HOMO–LUMO gap of the dielectric ferroelectric P(VDF–TrFE) but the P3HT does not exhibit a change in the molecular band offset with respect to the Fermi level or band bending with polarization reversal, unlike P(VDF–TrFE).