title: High-resolution monochromated electron energy-loss spectroscopy of organic photovoltaic materials.
abstract: Advances in electron monochromator technology are providing opportunities for high energy resolution (10 - 200meV) electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) to be performed in the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). The energy-loss near-edge structure in core-loss spectroscopy is often limited by core-hole lifetimes rather than the energy spread of the incident illumination. However, in the valence-loss region, the reduced width of the zero loss peak makes it possible to resolve clearly and unambiguously spectral features at very low energy-losses (<3eV). In this contribution, high-resolution EELS was used to investigate four materials commonly used in organic photovoltaics (OPVs): poly(3-hexlythiophene) (P3HT), [6,6] phenyl-C61butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM), copper phthalocyanine (CuPc), and fullerene (C60). Data was collected on two different monochromated instruments - a Nion UltraSTEM 100 MC 'HERMES' and a FEI Titan360-300 Image-Corrected S/TEM - using energy resolutions (as defined by the zero loss peak full-width at half-maximum) of 35meV and 175meV, respectively. The data was acquired to allow deconvolution of plural scattering, and Kramers-Kronig analysis was utilized to extract the complex dielectric functions. The real and imaginary parts of the complex dielectric functions obtained from the two instruments were compared to evaluate if the enhanced resolution in the Nion provides new opto-electronic information for these organic materials. The differences between the spectra are discussed, and the implications for STEM-EELS studies of advanced materials are considered.
authors.affiliation: Center for Electron Microscopy and Analysis, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Jessica A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Alexander
authors.affiliation: Center for Electron Microscopy and Analysis, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Frank J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Scheltens
authors.affiliation: Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, WPAFB, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Lawrence F
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Drummy
authors.affiliation: Materials and Manufacturing Directorate, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, WPAFB, OH, United States.
authors.forename: Michael F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Durstock
authors.affiliation: SuperSTEM Laboratory, SciTech Daresbury Campus, Daresbury, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Fredrik S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Hage
authors.affiliation: SuperSTEM Laboratory, SciTech Daresbury Campus, Daresbury, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Quentin M
authors.initials: QM
authors.lastname: Ramasse
authors.affiliation: Center for Electron Microscopy and Analysis, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States. Electronic address: mccomb.29@osu.edu.
authors.forename: David W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: McComb
keywords: C60; Copper phthalocyanine (CuPc); Electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS); Poly(3-hexlythiophene) (P3HT); Scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM); [6,6] phenyl-C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM)