Crystalline Structure and Ferroelectric Response of Poly(vinylidene fluoride)/Organically Modified Silicate Thin Films Prepared by Heat Controlled Spin Coating

Abstract

AbstractUltra‐thin films of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) and its organically modified silicate (OMS) nanocomposites were prepared by heat‐controlled spin coating and characterized using FTIR‐GIRAS, AFM, DC‐EFM, and P–E measurements. Incorporation of OMS, Lucentite STN into the PVDF matrix favored the preferential formation of β‐phase in nanoscale thin films, irrespective of preparation temperature. The PVDF–OMS nanocomposite films have a little higher degree of orientation of molecular chains along the ITO substrate surface than that of the neat PVDF film. This gave the PVDF–OMS nanocomposite higher remanent polarization and better contrast in a DC‐EFM phase image. Unlike the thick PVDF–OMS nanocomposites films showing only α‐crystalline phase after quenching and slow cooling from the melt, the nanoscale thin PVDF–OMS films showed a mixture of β‐ and γ‐crystalline phases without any trace of α‐crystalline phase.magnified image