Ultrafine electrospun conducting polymer blend fibers and their photoluminescence properties

Ultrafine poly(2-methoxy-5-(2'-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene-vinylene) (MEH-PPV)/polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) blend fibers with the average diameters ranging from 625 nm to 1.46 mu m were prepared by electrospinning of polymer blend solutions in the mixed solvent of chlorobenzene and methanol. The average diameter of fibers was found to decrease with initial increase in the applied electrical potential and composition of MEH-PPV, reach a minimum value at an intermediate value, and increase with further increase in the applied electrical potential and composition of MEH-PPV, while it was found to decrease with increasing collection distance. PVP was easily removed from MEH-PPV/PVP fibers by the Soxhlet extraction, and after the removal of PVP at high composition of MEH-PPV, pure MEH-PPV fibers were obtained as a ribbon-like structure aligned with wrinkled surface in fiber direction. The increase in MEH-PPV composition and the removal of PVP from as-spun MEH-PPV/PVP fibers resulted in a significant blue-shift in UV-Vis absorption peak and red-shift in PL peak.