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Influence of substitution on the optical properties of functionalized pentacene monomers and crystals: Experiment and theory

The influence of solubilizing substitutional groups on the electronic and optical properties of functionalized pentacene molecules and crystals have been investigated. Density functional theory is used to calculate the electronic and optical properties of pentacene, TIBS-CF$_{3}$-pentacene, and TIPS-pentacene. The results are compared with experimental absorption spectra of solutions and the complex dielectric function of thin films in the 1 eV to 3 eV energy range. In all cases, the band gaps of the isolated molecules are found to be smaller than those of the crystals. The absorption spectra and dielectric function are interpreted in terms of the transitions between the highest occupied molecular orbitals and lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals. The bands associated to C and Si atoms connecting the functional side group to the pentacene in the (6,13) positions are found to be the main contributors to the optical transitions. The calculated dielectric functions of thin films agree with the experimental results. A redshift is observed in crystals as compared to molecules in experiment and theory both, where the amplitude depends on the packing structure.