Transport properties of thermally stable conducting poly(aniline-co-m-hydroxyaniline)

Abstract

Uniform dielectric permittivity of hollow and porous semiconducting copolymer poly(aniline-co-m-hydroxyaniline) (PA-co-m-HA)s has been studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The copolymer is obtained by the in- situ processing of the monomers, viz, aniline and 2-hydroxyaniline using ammonium persulfate (APS) as an oxidizing agent. The extent of the π-conjugated system or the bandgap of the highest occupied molecular orbitals (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals (LUMO) has been studied by electronic spectroscopy considering the blue-shift in the optical spectra. The frequency-dependent uniform ac conductivity has been noticed. Globular and porous morphology has been studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Reduced crystallinity of the copolymers has been confirmed by X-ray diffraction and DSC analysis. The electrochemical performance of the material is studied by cyclic voltammetry.