Modification Study of a Conducting Polymer Nanowire through Electron-Beam Irradiation

Abstract

We synthesized conducting poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanowires by using an electrochemical polymerization method with an alumina (Al2O3) nanoporous template. An electron (E)-beam through a linear electron accelerator was irradiated onto the PEDOT nanowires with the Al2O3 template. After E-beam irradiation, the Al2O3 template was removed by using a hydrofluoric acid solvent; then, an isolated single strand of PEDOT nanowires was obtained. To discern the structural and the conformational changes in the E-beam-irradiated PEDOT nanowires, we performed Raman and ultraviolet and visible absorption spectra on the nanowires. In order to study the electrical properties of the E-beam-irradiated PEDOT nanowires, we measured and analyzed the current-voltage characteristics of the pristine and the E-beam-irradiated PEDOT nanowires.