SOLID DOPANTS FOR CONDUCTIVE POLYMERS, METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR PREPARING THE SAME USING PLASMA TREATMENT, AND SOLID DOPING METHOD OF CONDUCTIVE POLYMERS

• US 20100270517A1
• Filed: 04/23/2010
• Published: 10/28/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Ajou University Industry, Elpani Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Ajou University Industry, Elpani Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Hong, Yong Cheol, Lee, Suck Hyun, Kim, Tae Ja, Kwon, O. Pil
• Application Number:
  US12/766,379
• Publication Number:
  US 20100270517A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 252/519.330
• CPC Class Codes: C08J 2300/12 Polymers characterised by physical features, e.g. anisotropy, viscosity or electrical conductivity
• CPC Class Codes: C08J 3/212 and solid additives
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/30 Doping active layers, e.g. electron transporting layers

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a solid dopant for doping a conductive polymer, which has a high dispersibility in a solvent by a plasma treatment, a method and an apparatus for preparing the solid dopants, a solid doping method of a conductive polymer using the solid dopants, and a solid doping method of a conductive polymer using plasma.

Claims

1. A solid doping method of a conductive polymer using plasma, comprising the processes of:

synthesizing dopant nanopowder as a solid dopant;

treating the dopant nanopowder with plasma; and

doping a conductive polymer by mixing the dopant nanopowder treated with the plasma and the conductive polymer dispersed in a solvent,

wherein the dopant nanopowder includes a material selected from a group consisting of titania, tungsten oxide, copper oxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, zirconium oxide, vanadium oxide, nickel oxide, cadmium oxide, selenium oxide, barium titanate, and a mixture thereof, or includes a material selected from a group consisting of zinc sulfate, zinc iodide, barium iodide, sodium iodide, cesium iodide, lead iodide, zinc oxide, cesium bromide, barium bromide, ZnS, ZnCdS, Gd₂O₂S, Y₂O₂S, CaWO₃, ZnSiO₄ and a mixture thereof.

2. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the process of treating the dopant nanopowder with plasma includes:

loading the dopant nanopowder into a vessel in a plasma chamber so as to be exposed to plasma;

selecting a gas suitable for generating plasma and injecting the gas into the plasma chamber;

applying voltage to the plasma chamber to generate plasma;

controlling an exposure time of the dopant nanopowder to the generated plasma;

turning off the generation of the plasma; and

collecting the dopant nanopowder treated with the plasma.

3. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein acidity (pH) of the dopant nanopowder treated with the plasma is about 4 or less.

4. The solid doping method of claim 1, further comprising:

pretreating the dopant nanopowder prior to the process of treating the dopant nanopowder with the plasma.

5. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein an equivalent ratio of the conductive polymer to the dopant nanopowder treated with the plasma is from about 1:

0.01 to about 1;

10.

6. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the process of treating the dopant nanopowder with the plasma is carried out at a temperature ranging from about −

10°

C. to about 800°

C.

7. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the plasma used in the process of treating the dopant nanopowder with the plasma is generated at a pressure ranging from about 10⁻

6 Torr to about 5 atm.

8. The solid doping method of claim 2, wherein the plasma gas is selected from a group consisting of an inert gas including argon, helium, and N₂;

H₂, O₂;

a fluoride gas including CF₄, NF₃ and SF₆;

a hydrocarbon gas including CH₄, C₂H₄, and C₂H₂;

SO, SO₂, NO₂, NO, CO₂, CO, NH₃ gas; and

a mixture thereof.

9. The solid doping method of claim 2, wherein the plasma gas is selected from a group consisting of H₂O₂, CH₃OH, C₂H₅OH, CH₃COCH₃, aniline, a C₆˜

C₂₀ hydrocarbon liquid, HCl, HClO₄, HBF₄, HPF₆, phosphoric acids, dichloroacetic acid, an organic sulfonic acid, pyrubic acid, and a mixture thereof, which is capable of being used by evaporation of a liquid state thereof.

10. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the dopant nanopowder is selected from a group consisting of titania, tungsten oxide, copper oxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, zirconium oxide, vanadium oxide, nickel oxide, cadmium oxide, selenium oxide, barium titanate, and a mixture thereof.

11. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the dopant nanopowder is selected from a group consisting of zinc sulfate, zinc iodide, barium iodide, sodium iodide, cesium iodide, lead iodide, zinc oxide, cesium bromide, barium bromide, ZnS, ZnCdS, Gd₂O₂S, Y₂O₂S, CaWO₃, ZnSiO₄, and a mixture thereof.

12. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the plasma used in the process of treating the dopant nanopowder with the plasma is selected from a group consisting of radio frequency plasma, high-frequency plasma, dielectric barrier discharge plasma, AC or DC glow discharge plasma, middle frequency plasma, arc plasma, corona discharge plasma, and a combination thereof.

13. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the dopant nanopowder treated with the plasma is hydrophilic and dispersive in the solvent.

14. The solid doping method of claim 1, wherein the conductive polymer includes polyaniline, polypyrrole, polythiophene, polyphenylenevinylene, polyphenylsulfide or polyparaphenylene.

15. A solid dopant for doping a conductive polymer, the solid dopant comprising:

dopant nanopowder selected from a group consisting of titania, tungsten oxide, copper oxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, zirconium oxide, vanadium oxide, nickel oxide, cadmium oxide, selenium oxide, barium titanate and a mixture thereof, or, selected from the group consisting of zinc sulfate, zinc iodide, barium iodide, sodium iodide, cesium iodide, lead iodide, zinc oxide, cesium bromide, barium bromide, ZnS, ZnCdS, Gd₂O₂S, Y₂O₂S, CaWO₃, ZnSiO₄, and a mixture thereof,

wherein the solid dopant has acidity (pH) adjusted to about 4 or less by plasma treatment and is hydrophilic and dispersive in a solvent.

16. The solid dopant of claim 15, wherein the dopant nanopowder is selected from a group consisting of titania, tungsten oxide, copper oxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, zirconium oxide, vanadium oxide, nickel oxide, cadmium oxide, selenium oxide, barium titanate, and a mixture thereof.

17. The solid dopant of claim 15, wherein the dopant nanopowder is selected from a group consisting of zinc sulfate, zinc iodide, barium iodide, sodium iodide, cesium iodide, lead iodide, zinc oxide, cesium bromide, barium bromide, ZnS, ZnCdS, Gd₂O₂S, Y₂O₂S, CaWO₃, ZnSiO₄, and a mixture thereof.

18. An apparatus for preparing a solid dopant for doping a conductive polymer using plasma, the apparatus comprising:

a plasma chamber having a gas inlet and a gas outlet at one side thereof;

a vessel, into which solid dopant nanopowder to be treated with plasma is loaded, placed in the plasma chamber;

a plasma generating device placed in the plasma chamber and configured to irradiate plasma to the vessel; and

a vibration-applying device or ultrasound-applying device configured to stir the solid dopant nanopowder loaded in the vessel for uniformly treating the solid dopant nanopowder with the plasma,

wherein the dopant nanopowder includes a material selected from a group consisting of titania, tungsten oxide, copper oxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, zirconium oxide, vanadium oxide, nickel oxide, cadmium oxide, selenium oxide, barium titanate, and a mixture thereof, or includes a material selected from a group consisting of zinc sulfate, zinc iodide, barium iodide, sodium iodide, cesium iodide, lead iodide, zinc oxide, cesium bromide, barium bromide, ZnS, ZnCdS, Gd₂O₂S, Y₂O₂S, CaWO₃, ZnSiO₄, and a mixture thereof.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the plasma chamber has a vacuum device including a vacuum pump.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the vessel has a stage configured to adjust a distance between the plasma and the solid dopant nanopowder.