Multiscale Analyses of Strain-Enhanced Charge Transport in Conjugated Polymers

Changing the donor unit in DPP-based polymers tunes backbone rigidity and the response to stretching. DPP-4T has a shorter solution persistence length than DPP-DTT and combines greater deformability with enhanced hole transport under strain. Scattering and spectroscopic measurements connect this improvement to chain alignment and backbone planarization; DPP-4T shows a 180% mobility increase at 80% strain.