Chapter 9 - Semiconductor Nanoparticle-Polymer Composites

Abstract

This chapter discusses semiconductor nanoparticle―polymer composites. Composites consisting of an insulating polymer matrix filled with nanosized particles are of interest because their long-term stability and because they offer new strategies for influencing interactions that may take place among the matrix and the nanoparticles. Polymers are flexible, easy to process at low temperatures, and possess a high di-electric breakdown field. By combining these properties, the possibility of developing new material with a high di-electric constant and a high di-electric breakdown field might be feasible. A number of methods are available for producing nanocomposites of semiconductor nanoparticles in a polymer matrix. A simple one is achieved by first preparing nanoparticles and then dispersing them in a solution of a polymer, followed by drying. Furthermore, a number of methods have been introduced to determine nanoparticle size, and the method of choice depends on the nature of nanoparticles being examined. This chapter concludes that the well known and possibly the best method to determine the size of nanoparticles in a composite is transmission electron microscopy (TEM), which allows the size distribution of nanoparticles to be determined.