Control of Charge-Carrier Mobility via In-Chain Spacer Length Variation in Sequenced Triarylamine Functionalized...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Organic Electronics
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs) require efficient charge transporting materials for optimal performance.
• Controlling charge-carrier mobility is crucial for matching electron and hole transport within PLEDs.
• Aryl amine functionalized polymers offer potential for charge transport applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize regioregular polyolefins functionalized with 2,7-bis(phenyl-m-toluylamino)fluorene (TPF) groups.
• To investigate the relationship between polymer structure and charge-carrier mobility.
• To evaluate the potential of these materials for use in PLEDs.

Main Methods:

• Multi-step organic synthesis of TPF-functionalized polyolefins.
• Characterization of synthesized polymers using spectroscopic and analytical techniques.
• Measurement of charge-carrier mobilities in the synthesized materials.

Main Results:

• Six TPF-functionalized polyolefins were successfully prepared with straightforward synthesis (3-4 steps) and good yields (>40%).
• Charge-carrier mobilities were controlled over three orders of magnitude by varying the spacer length between TPF groups.
• Achieved hole mobilities are comparable to electron mobilities of common PLED materials like Alq3 and PBD.

Conclusions:

• The developed polyolefins are promising charge transporting materials for PLEDs.
• Spacer length is an effective strategy for tuning charge-carrier mobility in these materials.
• This approach can be extended to other aryl systems for energy level and mobility matching in electroactive devices.