Issue 15, 2014

Energy transfer in PPV-based conjugated polymers: a defocused widefield fluorescence microscopy study

Abstract

Both pendant and main chain conjugated MEH-PPV based polymers have been studied at the level of single chains using confocal and widefield fluorescence microscopy techniques. In particular, defocused widefield fluorescence is applied to reveal the extent of energy transfer in these polymers by identifying whether they act as single emitters. For main chain conjugated MEH-PPV, molecular weight and the surrounding matrix play a primary role in determining energy transport processes and whether single emitter behaviour is observed. Surprisingly in polymers with a saturated backbone but containing the same pendant MEH-PPV oligomer on each repeating unit, intra-chain energy transfer to a single emitter is also apparent. The results imply there is chromophore heterogeneity that can facilitate energy funneling to the emitting site. Both main chain conjugated and pendant MEH-PPV polymers exhibit changes in orientation of the emission dipole during a fluorescence trajectory of many seconds, whereas a model MEH-PPV oligomer does not. The results suggest that, in the polymers, the nature of the emitting chromophores can change during the time trajectory.

Graphical abstract: Energy transfer in PPV-based conjugated polymers: a defocused widefield fluorescence microscopy study

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
19 Jan 2014
Accepted
04 Mar 2014
First published
04 Mar 2014
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2014,16, 7108-7114

Energy transfer in PPV-based conjugated polymers: a defocused widefield fluorescence microscopy study

E. N. Hooley, A. J. Tilley, J. M. White, K. P. Ghiggino and T. D. M. Bell, Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2014, 16, 7108 DOI: 10.1039/C4CP00276H

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