Coaxial semiconductive organic nanofibers and electrospinning fabrication thereof
A coaxial nanocomposite including a core, which includes fibers of a first organic polymer, and a shell, which includes fibers of a second organic polymer, the first polymer and the second polymer forming a heterojunction.
1. A coaxial nanocomposite diode or transistor comprising:
a polymer core comprising a first organic polymer; and
a polymer shell comprising a second organic polymer, the polymer core and the polymer shell forming an individual nanofiber comprising a uniform shell thickness around the polymer core, the first organic polymer and the second organic polymer forming an electroactive coaxial p-n heterojunction diode or transistor.
2. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the coaxial nanocomposite comprises a fiber or a disk.
3. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the polymer core consists of the first organic polymer, wherein the first organic polymer is one of a p-type polymer or an n-type polymer.
4. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the first organic polymer comprises more than one distinct organic polymer.
5. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the first organic polymer comprises a blend of more than one organic polymer.
6. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the first organic polymer comprises a blend of p-type regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) and polystyrene (PS).
7. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 6 , wherein the PS is present in an amount of about 6 wt % to about 8 wt % of the total weight of P3HT and PS.
8. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the second organic polymer comprises n-type poly(benzimidazobenzophenanthroline) (BBL).
9. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the coaxial nanocomposite has a diameter between about 200 nm and about 3000 nm.
10. The coaxial nanocomposite of claim 1 , wherein the polymer core has a diameter of about 150 nm to about 250 nm and the polymer shell has a diameter of about 25 nm to about 75 nm.
11. A method of forming a coaxial nanocomposite diode or transistor, the method comprising:
dissolving a first organic polymer in a first solvent to form a first mixture;
dissolving a second organic polymer in a second solvent to form a second mixture; and
electrospinning the first mixture and the second mixture concurrently to form an electroactive coaxial p-n heterojunction diode or transistor comprising a core of the first organic polymer and a shell of the second organic polymer, the core and the shell forming an individual nanofiber comprising a uniform shell thickness around the core.
12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the first organic polymer is a blend of P3HT and about 5 wt % to about 10 wt % PS and the first solvent is chloroform (CHCl 3 ).
13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the first mixture comprises greater than or equal to 0.1 wt % and less than or equal to 2.0 wt % P3HT of the total weight of the first mixture.
14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second organic polymer is BBL and the second solvent is methanesulfonic acid (MSA).
15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the second mixture comprises about 0.20 wt % to about 0.50 wt % BBL of the total weight of the second mixture.
16. The method of claim 11 , wherein the electrospinning includes two luer-lock syringes and a coaxial needle.
17. The method of claim 11 , wherein the electrospinning is performed at a pump rate of about 3000 μL/hour and/or wherein the electrospinning is performed at a voltage of about 9 kV to about 15 kV.
18. The method of claim 11 , wherein multiple coaxial nanocomposites are formed having the same or different diameters.
19. An article comprising a coaxial nanocomposite diode or transistor, the coaxial nanocomposite comprising:
an individual nanofiber comprising a uniform thickness of a first organic polymer around a core of a second organic polymer, the first organic polymer and the second organic polymer forming an electroactive coaxial p-n heterojunction diode or transistor.
20. The article of claim 19 , wherein the article is a sensor, a flexible sensor, a set of synchronized parallel sensors, a multi-gas nanosensor, a biosensor, a bioarray, a radiation detector, a rectifier, a channel, an electrode, a solar cell, a textile, an intelligent textile, a flexible device, or a flexible display.