Correlation between the molecular structure and the charge carrier mobility in poly(arylene vinylene) derivatives

Abstract

Three different approaches are presented to achieve higher charge carrier mobility in PPV-type and related polymers. In all cases the focus is on structural modifications to the conjugated system. In the first approach, order is induced by the introduction of linear side chains. In the next approach, chiral side chains are introduced. In the third and final approach conjugated polymers have been developed with extended conjugated systems. Solubility problems associated with these new architectures have been avoided by using precursor routes. It has been demonstrated that the attachment of linear and chiral side chains onto the PVV backbone gives rise to structural order, effectively creating nano-structured polymer films. FET measurements indicate that this additional order results in an increase in the mobility. Our work demonstrates that many opportunities exist to increase the charge carrier mobility in PPV-type polymers, thus improving the applicability of this type of polymers in opto-electronics.