Infrared Investigations of the Neutral-Ionic Phase Transition in TTF-CA and Its Dynamics

Abstract

The neutral-ionic phase transition in TTF-CA was investigated by steady-state and time-resolved infrared spectroscopy. We describe the growth of high-quality single crystals and their characterization. Extended theoretical calculations were performed in order to obtain the band structure, the molecular vibrational modes and the optical spectra along all crystallographic axes. The theoretical results are compared to polarization-dependent infrared reflection experiments. The temperature-dependent optical conductivity is discussed in detail. We study the photo-induced phase transition in the vicinity of thermally-induced neutral-ionic transition. The observed temporal dynamics of the photo-induced states is attributed to the random-walk of neutral-ionic domain walls. We simulate the random-walk annihilation process of domain walls on a one-dimensional chain.

Keywords

• charge-transfer salts
• TTF-CA
• neutral-ionic phase transition
• crystal growth
• characterization
• steady-state and transient infrared spectroscopy
• vibrational spectroscopy
• light-induced phase transition
• domain-wall motion
• random-walk simulations