Effect of o-Carborane on the Optoelectronic and Device-Level Properties of Poly(fluorene)s

ACS Macro Lett. 2012 Apr 17;1(4):469-472. doi: 10.1021/mz300037u. Epub 2012 Mar 20.

Abstract

Carboranes have been previously noted to distinctively affect the luminescent properties of semiconducting polymers when incorporated into the conjugated backbone. In this report, we use carborane-based poly(fluorene) derivatives as active materials for polymer light-emitting diodes and transistors. Optoelectronic analysis unequivocally shows that carborane does not participate in the π-conjugated network, yet their presence causes major red-shifting in device electroluminescence as well as in thin film photoluminescence. In field effect transistors, they also improve charge carrier mobility by an order of magnitude despite disrupting π-conjugation. This use of carborane-containing conjugated polymers in active devices holds promise as new responsive materials in electronic polymer applications.