Publication Date
2024
Document Type
Thesis
Committee Members
Eric Fossum, Ph.D. (Advisor); Rachel Aga, Ph.D. (Committee Member); Travis Clark, Ph.D. (Committee Member)
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Abstract
Thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) small molecules have dominated the literature for their use in OLED devices. The use of TADF polymers has been employed to correct for processing issues that small molecules face, providing increased thermal stability and supportive electronic structures. A TADF chromophore based on a 2-(2,6-difluorophenyl)-benzothiazole-carbazole donor-acceptor pair was synthesized via a copper (I) catalyzed reaction. The chromophore exhibited peak absorption at 340 nm and emission at 477 nm. The resulting chromophore was incorporated into a poly(arylene ether) (PAE) backbone via nucleophilic aromatic substitution (NAS) with 4,4’-biphenol, 4,4’-difluorodiphenyl sulfone, and 2-(2,6-difluorophenyl)-benzothiazole as comonomers. UV/Vis analysis of the polymers in solution in NMP found that peak absorption values ranged from 319 nm to 340 nm. Fluorescence of the polymers found peak emission ranging from 452 nm to 456 nm. Absorption and emission characteristics of polymers are attributed to incorporation of the chromophore. Analysis by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) determined that the addition of chromophore to a BPDPS backbone decreased glass transition temperatures and improved glass transition temperatures in BP-BTZ polymers when content was increased from 10% to 15%. The final blue-emitting polymers reflected the benefits of increased thermal stability seen in other PAE species as well as the retention of photophysical properties observed by the blue-emitting TADF chromophore.
Page Count
77
Department or Program
Department of Chemistry
Year Degree Awarded
2024
Copyright
Copyright 2024, all rights reserved. My ETD will be available under the "Fair Use" terms of copyright law.
