Investigating the electroactive properties of PVDF-based organic materials by Piezoresponse Force Microscopy
SPEAKERS
  • Dr. Anthony Ferri
    University of Artois, France
Authors
Dr. Anthony Ferri

See all webinars in the “Image your way to nature” series here.

Polymers with electroactive properties provide numerous opportunities for applications in domains such as biomedicine or energy generation owing to their flexibility, good mechanical acoustic impedance and biocompatibility compared to ceramic materials. Among this class of polymers, poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) is a semi-crystalline polymer with unique piezo-, pyro- and ferroelectric properties allowing its use for various development in sensors, actuators and energy harvester systems. Furthermore, the incorporation of nanofillers is an interesting way to strongly enhance the functional properties of such fluoropolymers. In this context, advanced Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) modes, such as the Piezoresponse (PFM), are fully suitable for probing the response of both the nanometric inclusions and the polymer matrix. This is a crucial step for optimizing macroscopic performance of devices based on such piezocomposites, while keeping in mind that the investigation of electroactive behavior in soft materials remains gentle at such nanoscale.
Here, an overview of our recent results related to the AFM investigation of PVDF-based composites will be proposed, with a particular focus on understanding the structure-property relationships in these systems.