Spatially and temporally resolved emission from aggregates in conjugated polymers

J. W. Blatchford; T. L. Gustafson; A. J. Epstein; D. A. Vanden Bout; J. Kerimo; D. A. Higgins; P. F. Barbara; D. -K. Fu; T. M. Swager; A. G. MacDiarmid

doi:10.1103/PhysRevB.54.R3683

Rapid Communication

Spatially and temporally resolved emission from aggregates in conjugated polymers

J. W. Blatchford, T. L. Gustafson, A. J. Epstein, D. A. Vanden Bout, J. Kerimo, D. A. Higgins, P. F. Barbara, D. -K. Fu, T. M. Swager, and A. G. MacDiarmid

Phys. Rev. B 54, R3683(R) – Published 1 August 1996

Abstract

We present results of cw, time-resolved, and spatially resolved spectroscopic studies of emission and absorption in a model conjugated polymer, poly( $p$ -pyridyl vinylene) (PPyV). The redshifted film spectra suggest the formation of aggregated regions. The ∼4× reduction in emission efficiency in films vs solution is attributed to a longer radiative lifetime for aggregate excitons, as is evidenced by time-resolved fluorescence measurements. We present direct optical imaging of aggregates in a conjugated polymer via near-field scanning optical microscopy. The aggregate emission and absorption are found to be localized to partially aligned regions of the film ∼200 nm in size.