title: Radiation-induced synthesis of nanostructured conjugated polymers in aqueous solution: fundamental effect of oxidizing species.
abstract: Synthesis of conjugated poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) polymers is achieved through the radiolysis of N2O-saturated aqueous solutions of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene by using two different oxidizing species: HO(·) (hydroxyl) and N3(·) (azide) radicals. Both oxidative species lead to self-assembled polymers that are evidenced in solution by cryotransmission electron microscopy and UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy and, after centrifugation and deposition, by scanning electron microscopy and attenuated total reflectance FTIR techniques. Whereas HO(·) radicals lead to PEDOT-OH globular nanostructures with hydrophilic properties, N3(·) radicals enable the formation of amphiphilic PEDOT-N3 fibrillar nanostructures. These results, which highlight the differences in the intermolecular interaction behaviors of the two kinds of PEDOT polymers, are discussed in terms of polymerization mechanisms.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Chimie Physique, LCP, UMR 8000, CNRS, Université Paris-Sud 11, Bât. 349, Campus d'Orsay, 15 Avenue Jean Perrin, 91405 Orsay Cedex (France).
authors.forename: Youssef
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lattach
authors.forename: Cecilia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Coletta
authors.forename: Srabanti
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.forename: Samy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Remita
keywords: conducting polymers; nanostructures; polymerization; radicals; radiolysis