Abstract
Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) was employed to characterize the structure and α→β phase transformation of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)–urea complexes. While the THz responses of α- and β-form complexes are both originated from hydrogen bonding interactions, they possess different THz absorption bands. The α-form PEO–urea complex shows two bands at 1.12 and 1.24 THz, which are vibration modes due to the hydrogen bonding among urea and between PEO and urea, respectively; the β-form PEO–urea complex shows a band at 1.48 THz, which is a vibration mode due to the hydrogen bonding among urea. A polarized THz-TDS study demonstrates that the urea–urea hydrogen bonding direction rotates 90° during the β→α transformation process. This study reveals the great potential of THz-TDS for investigating polymer–small molecule complexes.
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