Understanding the Relationships between the Structure and the Physical Properties of Conjugated Polymers using Particle Scattering and Electronic Properties

Abstract

Conjugated polymers are semiconducting materials of high interest for use in organic photovoltaics (OPV), organic light-emitting diodes (OLED), and organic field-effect transistors (OFET) owing to their light weight, flexibility, and solution processability. However, their electronic and physical property limitations have prevented their widespread use in devices such as solar cells and transistors. This work seeks to understand the relationship between tunable parameters, microstructure morphology, and device properties in conjugated polymers to design better materials and bridge the performance gap with traditional semiconductors. Specifically, characterization techniques including particle scattering and electronic property measurements are used to understand the connection between molecular structure, thin film morphology and electronic performance in thiophene and indacenodithiophene based conjugated polymers.