Two alkyl substituted polythiophene derivatives: poly(3-hexylthiophene)(P3HT) and poly(3-decylthiophene)(P3DT), have synthesized by oxidation coupling polymerization of 3-alkylthiophene using iron(III) chloride as catalyst in chloroform. While both polymers in pure chloroform solution have maximum absorption at approximately same wavelength of 440nm, they behave differently with respect to changes observed on their UV-visible and photoluminescence spectra when the quality of the poor solvent is changed in good solvent (chloroform) / poor solvent (methanol) mixtures. With increasing volume fraction of methanol in mixtures, the absorption spectra of P3HT and P3DT red-shift, peaking at maximum wavelength of 495nm (P3HT) and 510nm(P3DT). Furthermore, the absorption spectra of the two polymers in chloroform blue-shift as the temperature rises. P3HT shows 4.73nm blue-shifts at 50℃ in contrast to the case at 20℃, while P3DT blue-shifts about 5.04nm. The photoluminescence spectra of the two polymers in mixed solution are also investigated, which show that the luminescence spectra shift to longer wavelength with an accompanying drop in the PL intensity as methanol is increased. The absorption and emission spectra of the two polymers in a poor solvent and a thin film are similar, which indicate that a similar longer conjugation length in the two cases. It could conclude that the polymers exist almost the same conformations and aggregations in both a poor solvent and a thin film. P3DT exhibits more sensitive spectra properties (big red-shifts in both absorption and luminescence spectra in poor solvents and large blue-shifts at high temperature) with contrast to P3HT, which imply that long side alkyl may improve the chromic properties of the polymer.
