Electrostatically-generated nanofibers of electronic polymers

Long nanofibers of conducting electronic polymers and their blends and also conventional polymers are conveniently fabricated in air by a non-mechanical electrostatic dispersion method. All fibers in a given preparation of certain polymers have diameters < 100nm. Fibers of 100% doped polyaniline as well as its blends in polymers such as polystyrene and polyethylene oxide have been prepared. Current/voltage in addition to conductivity/temperature relationships of single fibers as small as 419 nm have been obtained. Polyacrylonitrile and polystyrene fibers can be easily and uniformly coated from aqueous solution with conducting polypyrrole or with gold by electroless deposition. Polyacrylonitrile fibers can be thermally converted to conducting carbon nanofibers.