Electro-conductive fabrics based on dip coating of cotton in poly(3-hexylthiophene)

Electro-conductive cotton fabrics based on poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) were prepared using dip coating processing technique. The effect of solvent type used for the preparation of P3HT solutions on the amount of polymer incorporated into the fabric and the morphology of P3HT coated cotton fabrics were studied using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Thermal and mechanical studies revealed that after incorporation of P3HT, the fabrics preserved their original thermal stability and mechanical properties. Electrical resistivity measurements showed a decrease by several orders of magnitude in both surface and volume resistivities for cotton-P3HT system relative to the untreated cotton. We also demonstrate that further significant improvement in electrical resistivity can be achieved by doping P3HT coated cotton with iodine.