Light emission of a single strand of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanowire

We observed the green and orange-red light emission from the single strand of doped and de-doped poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanowires, respectively, by means of the laser confocal microscope photoluminescence (PL) experiments. Light-emitting PEDOT nanowires were electrochemically synthesized and the doping level of the systems was electrochemically controlled through cyclic voltammetry in a solution of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIMPF6) ionic liquid. From the ultraviolet and visible absorbance spectra, we observed the bipolaron band and the π-π* transition peaks for the doped and de-doped PEDOT nanowires, respectively. The PL intensity of the de-doped PEDOT single nanowire was 2-3 times higher than that of the doped one. Comparing the PL intensities of the fresh and aged PEDOT single nanowire, we observed the relatively long-term stable light emission from the PEDOT nanowires.