Imaging the Effects of Annealing on the Polymorphic Phases of Poly(vinylidene fluoride)

The effect of annealing on the phase transformation and the dielectric properties of poly(vinylidene fluoride). (PVDF) h explore using quasi-Single molecule (quasi-SM) microscopy: The solvatochrotnic properties of nile red (NR) are employed to measure the spatial distribution of the local dielectric constant (e) in similar to 30 mu m thiCk PVDF films before and after annealing at 90 degrees C. The results presented here demonstrate that nonannealed films exhibit much larger epsilon distributions, both in tents of magnitude and distribution, when compared to annealed, I-films. The polymorphic phase of INDF hefote and after annealing is also confirmed using X-ray diffraction. Nonannealed films are found to be in the gamma-phase with annealiug promoting the transition to primarily beta-phase. Combining these results, we conclude that the decrease in e with annealing time is due to the phase transformation from gamma- to beta-phase. Using quasi-SM imaging techniques One can readily visualize the epsilon environments present 'within diffeteht polymorphic phases of PVDF.