Scanning probe microscope imaging of polyaniline thin films in non‐contact mode

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Abstract
The structure of electropolymerized thin films of polyaniline has been studied using the techniques of contact and non‐contact scanning probe microscopy (SPM). Films exposed to Ir+ cations in solution, as well as unexposed films, were examined. Contact‐mode SPM images of these films reveal only a diffuse, amorphous surface structure in both types of film, while non‐contact SPM images indicate an intricate, nanometer‐scale domain structure. Film growth is in a layer‐by‐layer mode, with each layer consisting of small polymer bundles of average dimension 1000 ± 75 Å. The Ir+ incorporation in these films does not involve a restructuring of the film morphology. The relevance of the microscopic domain structure to models describing conduction mechanisms in these films is also discussed.