Jessica E. Kroeze

Charge mobility in discotic liquid crystalline porphyrins and phthalocyanines measured by PR-TRMC

The pulse-radiolysis time-resolved microwave conductivity technique, “PR-TRMC”, has been used to determine the charge carrier mobility within columnar stacks of mesomorphic discotic porphyrins and phthalocyanines. The influences of temperature, morphology and variations in the primary molecular structure are demonstrated and discussed. Both the mesomorphic and conductive properties are shown to be dramatically influenced by subtle changes in the peripheral alkyl chain structure or the core-to-chain coupling element. Mobilities close to 1 cm2.V−1.s−1 are found in crystalline solids, and well in excess of 0.1 cm2.V−1.s−1 in columnar, liquid crystalline phases. These values which are even larger than those determined by PR-TRMC for conjugated polymers and similar to values found for electrons and holes in organic single crystals.