Molecular Disorder in Crystalline Thin Films of an Asymmetric BTBT Derivative

© 2021 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.

Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:Chemistry of materials : a publication of the American Chemical Society. - 1998. - 33(2021), 4 vom: 23. Feb., Seite 1455-1461
1. Verfasser: Hofer, Sebastian (VerfasserIn)
Weitere Verfasser: Unterkofler, Johanna, Kaltenegger, Martin, Schweicher, Guillaume, Ruzié, Christian, Tamayo, Adrián, Salzillo, Tommaso, Mas-Torrent, Marta, Sanzone, Alessandro, Beverina, Luca, Geerts, Yves Henry, Resel, Roland
Format: Online-Aufsatz
Sprache:English
Veröffentlicht: 2021
Zugriff auf das übergeordnete Werk:Chemistry of materials : a publication of the American Chemical Society
Schlagworte:Journal Article
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:© 2021 The Authors. Published by American Chemical Society.
The molecule 2-decyl-7-phenyl-[1]benzothieno[3,2-b][1]benzothiophene (Ph-BTBT-10) is an organic semiconductor with outstanding performance in thin-film transistors. The asymmetric shape of the molecule causes an unusual phase behavior, which is a result of a distinct difference in the molecular arrangement between the head-to-head stacking of the molecules versus head-to-tail stacking. Thin films are prepared at elevated temperatures by crystallization from melt under controlled cooling rates, thermal-gradient crystallization, and bar coating at elevated temperatures. The films are investigated using X-ray diffraction techniques. Unusual peak-broadening effects are found, which cannot be explained using standard models. The modeling of the diffraction patterns with a statistic variation of the molecules reveal that a specific type of molecular disorder is responsible for the observed peak-broadening phenomena: the known head-to-head stacking within the crystalline phase is disturbed by the statistic integration of reversed (or flipped) molecules. It is found that 7-15% of the molecules are integrated in a reversed way, and these fractions are correlated with cooling rates during the sample preparation procedure. Temperature-dependent in situ experiments reveal that the defects can be healed by approaching the transition from the crystalline state to the smectic E state at a temperature of 145 °C. This work identifies and quantifies a specific crystalline defect type within thin films of an asymmetric rodlike conjugated molecule, which is caused by the crystallization kinetics
Beschreibung:Date Revised 16.07.2022
published: Print-Electronic
Citation Status PubMed-not-MEDLINE
ISSN:0897-4756
DOI:10.1021/acs.chemmater.0c04725