Evaluating the chemio-physio properties of novel zinc oxide-polyaniline nanocomposite polymer films

Abstract

Recently, polymer matrix-based nanocomposites have become a prominent area of research and development in optics, as well as in optoelectronic, biomedical, electrical and electronic applications. Organic polymer-based electronic devices have the potential to be lower in cost and more flexible in the manner in which they are manufactured. However, they need significant improvement in both efficiency and long-term stability. Therefore, we made an attempt to synthesize zinc oxide (ZnO)-polyaniline (PANI) using chemical and emulsion polymerization techniques. The properties of ZnO-PANI films were then systematically characterized with several physical techniques. Electrochemical investigations revealed that the individual redox properties of ZnO and PANI can be maintained in a nanocomposite ZnO-PANI system. Furthermore, our results indicated that ZnO-PANI films can exhibit a wide redox potential window. Moreover, we observed the formation of a single-layer nano-Schottky junction in ZnO-PANI films, and interesting positive temperature coefficient properties in ZnO-PANI-embedded polystyrene films. © The Society of Polymer Science, Japan (SPSJ) All rights reserved.