Electrochemical co-deposition of conductive polymer-silica hybrid thin films.

Citation:

Moran Raveh, Liu, Liang , and Mandler, Daniel. . 2013. “Electrochemical Co-Deposition Of Conductive Polymer-Silica Hybrid Thin Films.”. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys.physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 15, Pp. 10876 - 10884.

Abstract:

Conductive polymers, such as polypyrrole (ppy), were the subject of numerous studies due to their promising applications in org. solar cells, flexible electronics, electrochromic devices, super capacitors, etc. Yet, their application is still limited as a result of poor processability. SiO2 is reported to improve the mech. strength and adhesion of conductive polymer films. The authors propose a controllable electrochem. approach for prepg. ppy-SiO2 hybrid thin films from a soln. contg. both pyrrole and silane monomers. Pyrrole can be electropolymd. using anodic potentials, while SiO2 can be electrodeposited under cathodic potentials. Thus, the authors studied the formation of ppy-SiO2 hybrid thin films on a stainless steel surface by applying alternating potentials, i.e. cathodic followed by anodic pulses (denoted C + A) or anodic followed by cathodic pulses (denoted A + C). By controlling the deposition potential and time for the cathodic and anodic pulses, the film thickness and compn. can be manipulated well as analyzed using profilometry and EDX. The element depth profile of the films was characterized using secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS). In essence, for the C + A process, pyrrole diffuses through the cathodically electrodeposited wet silica gel layer and undergoes anodic polymn. on the substrate, while for the A + C process, silane can be electrodeposited both on top of the anodically electrodeposited conductive ppy films as well as on the stainless steel through the pinholes in the ppy film. This offers a simple approach for tuning the structure of conductive polymer-sol-gel composite films. [on SciFinder(R)]