Tuning intermolecular interactions in di-octyl substituted polyfluorene via hydrostatic pressure

Polyfluorenes (PFs) represent a unique class of poly para-phenylene based blue-emitting polymers with intriguing structure-property relationships. Slight variations in the choice of functionalizing side chains result in dramatic differences in the inter- and intra-chain structures in PFs. We present photoluminescence (PL) and Raman scattering studies of bulk samples and thin films of dioctyl-substituted PF (PF8) under hydrostatic pressure. The bulk sample was further thermally annealed at 1.9 GPa. The PL vibronics of the as-is sample red-shift at an average rate of 26 meV/GPa. The thermally annealed sample is characterized by at least two phase transitions at 1.1 GPa and 4.2 GPa, each of which has a different pressure coefficient for PL vibronics. The Huang-Rhys factor, a measure of the electron-phonon interaction, is found to increase with increasing pressures signaling a higher geometric relaxation of the electronic states. The Raman peaks harden with increasing pressures; the intra-ring C-C stretch frequency at 1600 cm$^{-1}$ has a pressure coefficient of 7.2 cm$^{-1}$/GPa and exhibits asymmetric line shapes at higher pressures, characteristic of a strong electron-phonon interaction. The optical properties of PF8 under high pressure are further contrasted with those of a branched side chain substituted PF.Comment: 22 pages, 10 figure

Dip-pen patterning of poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene) chain-conformation-based nano-photonic elements

Metamaterials are a promising new class of materials, in which sub-wavelength physical structures, rather than variations in chemical composition, can be used to modify the nature of their interaction with electromagnetic radiation. Here we show that a metamaterials approach, using a discrete physical geometry (conformation) of the segments of a polymer chain as the vector for a substantial refractive index change, can be used to enable visible wavelength, conjugated polymer photonic elements. In particular, we demonstrate that a novel form of dip-pen nanolithography provides an effective means to pattern the so-called β-phase conformation in poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene) thin films. This can be done on length scales ≤500 nm, as required to fabricate a variety of such elements, two of which are theoretically modelled using complex photonic dispersion calculations

Conformational Studies of Poly(9,9-dialkylfluorene)s in Solution Using NMR Spectroscopy and Density Functional Theory Calculations

Relationships have been obtained between intermonomer torsional angle and NMR chemical shifts (1H and 13C) for isolated chains of two of the most important poly(9,9-dialkylfluorenes), poly[9,9-bis(2-ethylhexyl)fluorene-2,7-diyl] (PF2/6) and the copolymer poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-[2,1,3]benzothiadiazole-4,7-diyl) (F8BT), using DFT calculations. The correlations provide a model for NMR spectral data interpretation and the basis for analysis of conformational changes in poly(9,9-dialkylfluorene-2,7-diyl)s. The correlations obtained for PF2/6 indicate that the 13C chemical shifts of the aromatic carbons close to the intermonomer connection (C1, C2, and C3) have minimum values at planar conformations (0° and 180°) and maximum values at 90° conformations. In contrast, the 1H chemical shifts of the corresponding aromatic ortho protons (Ha and Hb) are greatest for planar conformations, and the minimum values are seen for 90° conformations. For the F8BT copolymer, similar relationships are observed for the 1H (Ha, Hb, and Hc) aromatic shifts. Considering the aromatic carbons of F8BT, the behavior of C2, C4, C5, and C6 is similar to that found for the PF2/6 carbons. However, C1 and C3 of the fluorene moiety behave differently with varying torsion angle. These are in close proximity to the fluorene−benzothiadiazole linkage and are markedly affected by interactions with the thiadiazole unit such that δC1 is a maximum for 180° and a minimum for 0°, whereas δC3 is a maximum for 0° and minimum for 180°. We have studied the 1H and 13C spectra of the two polymers at temperatures between −50 °C and +65 °C. The observed changes to higher or lower frequency in the aromatic resonances were analyzed using these theoretical relationships. Fluorescence studies on PF2/6 in chloroform solution suggest there are no significant interchain interactions under these conditions. This is supported by variable-temperature NMR results. Polymer−solvent and polymer intramolecular interactions were found to be present and influence all of the alkylic and one of the aromatic 1H resonances (Hb). The detailed attribution of the 1H and 13C NMR spectra of the two polymers was made prior to the establishment of the relationships between torsion angle and NMR chemical shifts. This was carried out through DFT calculation of the 1H and 13C shielding constants of the monomers, coupled with distortionless enhancement by polarization transfer and heteronuclear correlation NMR spectra. Several DFT levels of calculation were tested for both optimization of structures and shielding constants calculation. The B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) method was found to perform well in both cases

Measuring Structural Inhomogeneity of Conjugated Polymer at High Pressures up to 30 GPa

We present X-ray scattering data from helical poly[9,9-bis(2-ethylhexyl)fluorene-2,7-diyl] by mapping the sample with 10 μm spatial resolution at pressures up to 31 GPa. Neon is used as pressure transmitting medium. Reduction of torsion angle between adjacent repeats is observed during compression and found to be reversible upon decompression. Chain conformation does not depend on lateral position of sample in the pressure range from 1 to 7 GPa but depends significantly when pressure is increased from 7 to 31 GPa. Crystallite orientation does not depend on pressure or lateral position. The radiation damage is studied optically ex situ and proved to be insignificant