Conformational Change of Alkyl Chains at Phase Transitions in Thin Films of an Asymmetric Benzothienothiophene Derivative

Among many promising organic semiconducting materials, 2-decyl-7-phenyl[1]benzothieno[3,2-b][1]benzothiophene (Ph-BTBT-C₁₀) shows outstanding device performances for organic field-effect transistors. This compound has a highly ordered liquid crystalline state, i.e., the smectic E (SmE) phase. Although the transition from the crystalline state to the SmE phase is believed to accompany melting of the alkyl chains, no spectroscopic evidence has been found so far. In this study, the conformational change of the decyl chains in Ph-BTBT-C₁₀films across the phase transition is analyzed by temperature-dependent measurements in situ using infrared spectroscopy. The spectral analysis reveals that the polycrystalline film has latent conformational disorder (the gauche conformer), the rate of which becomes more pronounced with the heat treatment. As expected, melting of the decyl chains is observed above the transition temperature to the SmE phase. This study also highlights the discovery of some key bands sensitive to the phase transitions in liquid crystalline organic semiconductors.