Temperature Dependent Surface Resistivity Measures of Commercial, Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT), and Silver Nano-Particle Doped Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Films

Matthew Edwards^1*, Stephen Egarievwe², Afef Janen¹, Tatiana Kukhtarev¹, Jemilia Polius¹, John Corda¹

¹Department of Physics, Chemistry & Mathematics, Alabama A & M University, Normal, Al, USA.
²Department of Engineering, Construction Management & Industrial Technology, Alabama A & M University, Normal, Al, USA.

DOI: 10.4236/msa.2014.513093                

Abstract

Pure and doped Polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF) films, for the detection of infrared radiation, have been well documented using the mechanism of pyroelectricity. Alternatively, the electrical properties of films made from Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) have received considerable attention in recent years. The investigation of surface resistivities of both such films, to this point, has received far less consideration in comparison to pyroelectric effects. In this research, we report temperature dependent surface resistivity measurements of commercial, and of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNT), or Ag-nanoparticle doped PVA films. Without any variation in the temperature range from 22°C to 40°C with controlled humidity, we found that the surface resistivity decreases initially, reaches a minimum, but rises steadily as the temperature continues to increase. This research was conducted with the combined instrumentation of the Keithley Model 6517 Electrometer and Keithley Model 8009 resistivity test fixture using both commercial and in-house produced organic thin films. With the objective to quantify the suitability of PVDF and PVA films as IR detector materials, when using the surface resistivity phenomenon, instead of or in addition to the pyroelectricity, surface resistivity measurements are reported when considering bolometry. We found that the surface resistivity measurements on PVA films were readily implemented.

Keywords

Silver Nano-Particles, Surface Resistivity, Multi-Wall Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT), Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Films

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	Malikov, E.Y., Muradov, M.B., Akperov, O.H., Eyvazova, G.M., Puskas, R., Madarasz, L., Kukovecz, A. and Konya, Z. (2014) Synthesis and Characterization of Polyvinyl Alcohol Based Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Nanocomposites. Physica E: Low-dimensional Systems and Nanostructures, 61, 129-134. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physe.2014.03.026
[2]	Renoux, P., Jonsson, S.A., Levente, K.J., Hamann, H.F. and Ingvarsson, S. (2011) Sub-Wavelength Bolometers: Uncooled Platinum Wires as Infrared sensors. Optics Express, 19, 8721. http://dx.doi.org/10.1364/OE.19.008721
[3]	Chiu, F.-C. (2014) A Review on Conduction Mechanisms in Dielectric Films. Advances in Materials Science and Engineering, 2014, Article ID: 578168.
[4]	Maryniak, W.A., Uehara, T. and Noras, M.A. (2003) Surface Resistivity and Surface Resistance Measurements Using a Concentric Ring Probe Technique. Trek Application Note No. 1005.
[5]	Wong, C.K. and Shin, F.G. (2005) Electrical Conductivity Enhanced Dielectric and Piezoelectric Properties of Ferroelectric 0-3 Composites. Journal of Applied Physics, 97, 064111. http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.1862317
[6]	Nye, J.F. (1985) Physical Properties of Crystals. Oxford Science Publications.
[7]	Edwards, M.E., Batra, A.K., Ashwith, C.K., Guggilla, P. and Curley, M. (2012) Pyroelectric Properties of PVDF: MWCNT Nanocomposite Film for Uncooled Infrared Detectors. Materials Sciences and Applications, 3, 851-855. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/msa.2012.312124
[8]	Navid, A., Lynch, C.S. and Pilon, L. (2010) Purified and Porous Poly (Vinylidene Fluoride-Trifluoroethylene) Thin Films for Pyroelectric Infrared Sensing and Energy Harvesting. Smart Materials and Structures, 19, 1-13. http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0964-1726/19/5/055006
[9]	Hartono, A., Satira, S., Djamal, M. and Ramli, E.S. (2013) Poly (Vinylidene Fluoride) Thin Film Prepared by Roll Hot Press. Journal of Applied Physics, 3, 7-11.
[10]	Prathna, T.C., Chandrasekaran, N., Raichur, A.M., Mukherjee, A. (2011) Biomimetic Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles by Citrus limon (Lemon) Aqueous Extract and Theoretical Prediction of Particle Size. Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 82, 152-159. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfb.2010.08.036
[11]	Malikov, E.Y., Muradov, M.B., Akperov, O.H., Eyvazova, G.M., Puskas, R., Madarasz, D., Nagy, L., Kukovecz, á. and Kónya, Z. (2014) Synthesis and Characterization of Polyvinyl Alcohol Based Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube Nanocomposites. Physica E, 61, 129-134. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.physe.2014.03.026
[12]	Reitz, J.R., Milford, F.J. and Christy, R.W. (1980) Foundation of Electromagnetic Theory. Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., Boston.
[13]	Agullo’-Popez, F., Cabrera, J.M. and Agullo’-Rueda, F. (1994) Electrooptics: Phenomena, Materials, and Applications. Academic Press, Waltham.
[14]	Kittel, C. (2005) Introduction to Solid State Physics. John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken.
[15]	Hinchliffe, A. and Munn, R.M. (1985) Molecular Electromagnetism. John Wiley and Sons, Hoboken.
[16]	Griffiths, D.J. (1999) Introduction to Electrodynamics. 3rd Edition, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River.
[17]	Israelachili, J.N. (1985) Intermolecular and Surface Forces, with Applications to Colloidal and Biological Systems. Academic Press, Waltham.
[18]	Borch, J., Lyne, M., Mark, R. and Habeger Jr., C. (2010) Handbook of Physical Testing of Paper. CRC Press, Boca Raton.
[19]	Li, Q., Xue, Q.Z., Gao, X.L. and Zheng, Q.B. (2009) Temperature Dependence of the Electrical Properties of the Carbon Nanotube/Polymer Composites. eXPRESS Polymer Letters, 3, 769-777.
[20]	Siemann, U. (2005) Solvent Cast Technology—A Versatile Tool for Thin Film Production. Progress in Colloid and Polymer Science, 130, 1-14.