Basics of Macromolecules That Support Image Technology (VIII)—Synthesis and Thin Film Electronic Devices of Alkyne-Containing Semiconducting Polymers—

Abstract

Chemical functionalization of poly (arylenebutadiynylene) s and their applications to organic solar cells and thin-film transistors are described. The terminal alkynes of poly (arylenebutadiynylene) s are utilized as functional groups for azide-alkyne click reaction to introduce polystyrene chains. The resulting coil-rod-coil type block copolymer was demonstrated to be an effective compatibilizer for bulk-heterojunction organic solar cells because it could promote nano-phase separation of donor and acceptor domains. In addition, by thermally annealing poly (arylenebutadiynylene) films at appropriate temperatures, topochemical reactions of the butadiyne units proceeded, resulting in cross-linked semiconducting polymer films. By tuning the cross-linking density, enhanced crystallinity was achieved, which led to an improved hole mobility in thin-film transistors.