Doping polythiophene derivatives with tridecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydrooctyl trichlorosilane vapor

A conducting polymer system of derivatives of polythiophene has been achieved by doping with tridecafluoro-1,1,2,2-tetrahydrooctyl trichlorosilane (TTT). After doping, conductivities of both polymers, poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and poly[2,5-bis(3-decabutylthiophene-2-yl)thieno(2,3-b)thiophenes] (PBTTT), increased by over five orders of magnitude. We observed non-homogeneous swelling of the polymer film using atomic force microsopy and other microscopic methods. We also showed that under certain conditions the doping was reversible. Based on an analysis of the UV-Vis spectra and other data, it seems that the dedoping was almost complete. We demonstrated that dedoping could be efficiently facilitated by exposing the films to light. We also observed large protrusions on the surface of some samples that could be explained as a mixture of polymer and organic solvent. These surface features do not contribute to the conductivity.M.S.Includes bibliographical references (p. 24-25)