Swift Heavy Ion Irradiation Induced Structural, Optical And Conformational Modifications In Conducting Polymer Nanostructures

Abstract

Structural and conformational modifications in conducting polymer nanostructures viz., Polyaniline (PAni) nanofibers induced by swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation have been investigated employing TEM, XRD, UV-Vis, FTIR and micro-Raman spectroscopy. Upon interaction with the highly energetic ions, PAni nanofibers are fragmented and get amorphized. The local range of order is found to decrease with a corresponding increase in the concentration of point defects and dislocations leading to the enhancement in strain. Vibrational spectra of the pristine and SHI irradiated PAni nanofibers studied using FTIR and micro-Raman (R) spectroscopy indicate conformational changes in PAni nanofibers upon SHI irradiation. Loss of -stacking due to the enhancement in the torsion angle between Cring-N-Cring upon irradiation is indicative of strong electrostatic interaction between the electron rich C–N site in the aromatic rings of PAni chains and the ion beam. The most significant variation in PAni nanofibers upon SHI irradiation is the transformation of para di-substituted benzene (benzenoid) structure of PAni into the quinone di-imine (quinoid) structures; a phenomenon that has been simultaneously observed in both the FTIR and Raman spectra. The presence of two main peaks representing the same structures in PAni nanofibers in both the Raman and IR spectra is because of the presence of delocalized sp 2 phases and local disorder in PAni nanofibers, which gives rise to electrical and mechanical fluctuations that destroy the symmetry rules. Copyright © 2013 VBRI press.