title: Solvent effects on polymer sorting of carbon nanotubes with applications in printed electronics.
abstract: Regioregular poly(3-alkylthiophene) (P3AT) polymers have been previously reported for the selective, high-yield dispersion of semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in toluene. Here, five alternative solvents are investigated, namely, tetrahydrofuran, decalin, tetralin, m-xylene, and o-xylene, for the dispersion of SWCNTs by poly(3-dodecylthiophene) P3DDT. The dispersion yield could be increased to over 40% using decalin or o-xylene as the solvents while maintaining high selectivity towards semiconducting SWCNTs. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations in explicit solvents are used to explain the improved sorting yield. In addition, a general mechanism is proposed to explain the selective dispersion of semiconducting SWCNTs by conjugated polymers. The possibility to perform selective sorting of semiconducting SWCNTs using various solvents provides a greater diversity of semiconducting SWCNT ink properties, such as boiling point, viscosity, and surface tension as well as toxicity. The efficacy of these new semiconducting SWCNT inks is demonstrated by using the high boiling point and high viscosity solvent tetralin for inkjet-printed transistors, where solvent properties are more compatible with the inkjet printing head and improved droplet formation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Huiliang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Bing
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hsieh
authors.forename: Gonzalo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Jiménez-Osés
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Tassone
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Diao
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lei
authors.forename: Kendall N
authors.initials: KN
authors.lastname: Houk
authors.forename: Zhenan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Bao
mesh_terms: D004560:Electricity; D004581:Electronics / Q000379:methods*; D056004:Molecular Dynamics Simulation; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D011327:Printing / Q000379:methods*; D012995:Solubility; D012997:Solvents / Q000737:chemistry*; D013059:Spectrum Analysis, Raman; D014173:Transistors, Electronic
chemical_list: D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D011108:Polymers; D012997:Solvents
keywords: carbon nanotubes; polymer sorting; printed electronics; semiconductors; solvents; transistors