Molecular orientation of poly(3-butylthiophene) friction-transferred films

Oriented thin films of regioregular-poly(3-butylthiophene) (P3BT) were prepared by friction transfer method. Molecular orientation of P3BT in the friction-transferred films was investigated with grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXD), polarized ultraviolet–visible (UV) spectra, and infrared (IR) spectra. Polarized UV spectra showed the polymer backbones were aligned in the friction direction. GIXD measurements suggest that a axis in P3BT film is normal to the substrate, that is, π-stacking direction tends to be parallel to the substrate. This orientation is different from those of friction-transferred poly(3-hexylthiophene) and poly(3-dodecylthiophene).