Conducting probe atomic force microscopy applied to organic conducting blends

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is used in contact mode with a conducting tip to probe the conducting network of the conductive polymer polyaniline blended in an insulating polymer matrix. The high resistance contrast and sharp boundaries between conductive and insulating phases is observed down to scales in the 10 nm range. The very low scale electric dispersion corresponds to the morphologic phase segregation known from conventional AFM or transmission electron microscopy measurements, which is responsible for the ultralow electrical percolation threshold previously demonstrated in this system. (C) 2001 American Institute of Physics.