THERMAL ANNEALING EFFECTS ON SURFACE MORPHOLOGY AND ELECTRON DYNAMICS IN PSIF-DBT:PCBM BLENDS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17563/rbav.v45i1.1280Keywords:
PSiF-DBT:PCBM, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, Resonant Auger spectroscopy, Electron delocalization, Thermal annealingAbstract
We investigated the impact of thermal annealing on the electronic properties, order and transport characteristic of PSiF-DBT:PCBM bulk-heterojunction thin films using sulfur K-edge X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) together with resonant Auger spectroscopy (RAS). PSiF-DBT:PCBM thin films were produced and thermally annealed at two distinct temperatures: 100 and 200°C. RAS experiments, combined with the core-hole clock methodology, were used to extract electron delocalization times by analyzing resonant and normal Auger decay channels following sulfur 1s excitation. The spectroscopic data yield element-specific information on the electronic states of PSiF-DBT and on interfacial charge-transfer processes in PSiF-DBT:PCBM blends as a function of annealing temperature, which was also investigated by atomic force microscopy. This methodology enables direct evaluation of thermal-treatment-induced changes in electronic coupling and charge-transport pathways in silicon-containing donor–acceptor organic semiconductor blends.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Bruno Gabriel Alves Leite Borges, Maiara de Jesus Bassi, Lucimara Stolz Roman, Maria Luiza Rocco Duarte Pereira

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