Self organisation and photoinduced charge transfer in single-wall carbon nanotubes embedded in a thermotropic liquid crystal polymer

A hybrid material composed by a thermotropic liquid crystal (LCP) polymer (HBA–PET) and single wall carbon nanotubes has been produced in order to study the interaction at the interface matrix/filler for possible applications in electronics and optics. The nanocomposites are characterized by a mosaic-like morphology, with regions of randomly placed LC fibers intercalated with regions formed by aligned polymer fibers, that trigger in turn the alignment of carbon nanotube bundles by means of P stacking interaction. Moreover an effective electronic interaction between the nanocomposite components is demonstrated by combining use of photoluminescence and Raman spectroscopy. The photoinduced charge transfer between SWCNT and polymer could be explain on the basis of the injection of holes (generated in the polymer by light absorption), into the SWCNT valence band and followed by a radiationless decay of the excited polymer’s electron.