Optical Properties of DNA-CTMA Biopolymers and application in Metal-Biopolymer-Metal Photodetectors

摘要

The potential of using a DNA biopolymer in an electro-optic device is presented. A complex of DNA with the cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium-chloride (CTMA) was used to obtain an organic-soluble DNA material (DNA-CTMA). Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) was added to the DNA-CTMA to increase the electrical conductivity of the biopolymer. The CW absorbance and time-resolved photoluminescence of the resulting DNA-CTMA and DNA-CTMA-PEDOT:PSS were investigated. Both DNA materials have absorbance peaks at ～260 nm and a broad, Stokes shifted, photoluminescence peak around 470nm. The photoluminescence lifetime of the materials was observed to decrease with increasing UV excitation. Specifically, excitation with a high power ultrafast (～150fs) UV (266nm) laser pulse resulted in a drastic decrease in the photoluminescence lifetime decreases after a few minutes. Moreover, the observed decrease was faster in an air ambient than in a nitrogen ambient. This is most likely due to photo-oxidation that degrades the polymer surface resulting in an increase in the non-radiative recombination. In order to investigate the photoconductivity of these two materials, metal-biopolymer-metal (MBM) ultraviolet photodetectors with interdigitated electrodes were fabricated and characterized. The photoresponsivity of these devices was limited by the transport dynamics within the film. The prospects for the use of these materials in optical devices will be discussed.