Light emission of a single strand of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanowire

We observed the green and orange-red light emission from the single strand of doped and de-doped poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) nanowires, respectively, by means of the laser confocal microscope photoluminescence (PL) experiments. Light-emitting PEDOT nanowires were electrochemically synthesized and the doping level of the systems was electrochemically controlled through cyclic voltammetry in a solution of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIMPF6) ionic liquid. From the ultraviolet and visible absorbance spectra, we observed the bipolaron band and the π–π* transition peaks for the doped and de-doped PEDOT nanowires, respectively. The PL intensity of the de-doped PEDOT single nanowire was 2–3 times higher than that of the doped one. Comparing the PL intensities of the fresh and aged PEDOT single nanowire, we observed the relatively long-term stable light emission from the PEDOT nanowires.