Synthesis and photoluminescence of poly(3-hexylthiophene)/titania nanostructured hybrids

Novel poly(3-hexylthiophene)/titania hybrids were synthesized by the sol–gel process using titanium(IV) isopropoxide as a precursor in the presence of silane-bearing poly(3-hexylthiophene), which was prepared from the copolymerization of 3-hexylthiophene and 3-thienylmethyl-N-triethoxylsilylpropyl amide monomers. The chemical structure of these materials was characterized by FT-IR and 1H NMR. SEM micrographs demonstrated that the TiO2 nanoparticles were evenly distributed within the hybrid materials. The energy levels of the hybrid material were determined from cyclic voltammagrams (CV) and UV–vis spectra. Photoluminescence spectra imply that the photo-induced electron transfer is more efficient in silane-bearing poly(3-hexylthiophene)/TiO2 than in poly(3-hexylthiophene)/TiO2.