Mechanically robust poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)–SiO2 hybrid conductive film prepared by simultaneous vapor phase polymerization

This paper presents a poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)–SiO2 hybrid conductive film with enhanced physicochemical properties such as surface hardness, solvent mechanical wear resistance, and resistance to scratch prepared via co-vaporization and simultaneous polymerization of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) on a ferric p-toluenesulfonate (FTS) coated substrate. Moreover, the conductivity of the fabricated PEDOT–SiO2 hybrid films is much higher than that of a pristine PEDOT film due to a surface smoothness effect endowed by the SiO2 component in the hybrid film. Si content in the hybrid film obviously increased with FTS concentration, which can act as a catalyst for hydrolysis/condensation of TEOS. The demonstrated methodology for preparing poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)–SiO2 hybrid composite films by co-vaporization/simultaneous polymerization has strong potential for the preparation of highly mechanically robust conductive thin films.