Polymer Crystallization on the Ice Surface

Great attention has been paid to conducting polymers owing to their high electrical conductivity, processability, and environmental benignity. Such advantages suggest potential uses of the conducting polymers in a range of electronic devices. In literature, much of research efforts have been devoted to increase the crystallinity of conducting polymers, which has been known to be tied to the enhanced electrical conductivity. In this study, we present the new mean of preparing highly crystalline conducting polymers by employing ice as a hard template, where the liquid-like layer on the ice surface offers a new platform to grow conjugated polymer. It was found that crystallinity of conducting polymer can be modulated by changing the temperature of the ice template upon affecting the thickness of the liquid-like layer. The relation of crystallinity and electrical conductivity of ice-templated conducting polymers was quantitatively elucidated.