Effective Enhancement of Thermal Conductivity and Electrical Conductivity with Poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):Poly(4‐styrenesulfonate) through Solvent Treatment

Abstract

AbstractThe preparation of poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) film is proposed as a simple and industrialized approach. PEDOT:PSS is diluted with deionized water, tetrahydrofuran, dimethyl formamide, and dimethyl sulfoxide before being dry and suction filtered to create a membrane. After treatment with polar organic solvent, the in‐plane thermal conductivity of sample is increased from 1.386 to 2.375 Wm−1 K−1. The electrical conductivity increases from 1.8 to 592 S cm−1. The structural modifications of PEDOT:PSS considerably increase the heat conductivity, according to UV, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) characterization. This modification improves the polymer's thermal conductivity by increasing the contact force between molecules and changing the long chain conformation of polymers.