Electrospun fibers were produced using a variety of solvents to investigate the influence of polymer/solvent properties on the fiber surface morphology. Electrospinning is a novel processing technique for the production of fibers with diameters in the range of a few nanometers to tens of micrometers. We have been able to produce polymeric fibers with a high surface area through the introduction of a micro- and nanostructured surface structure, which we refer to as a “porous” morphology. These features could be introduced in several different polymeric fibers increasing their range of application significantly. The pores vary from densely packed, well-formed nanopores with diameters in the range 20−350 nm to larger flat pores of about 1 μm. The increased surface area of polymeric fibers was correlated with high volatility solvents used in the electrospinning process. The effect of processing parameters on the fiber surface morphology was also investigated using optical microscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM).

The orientation of the S 1 r S 0 π,π* transition dipole moments of oxonine (Ox + ), pyronine (Py + ), and POPOP (5,5′-diphenyl-2,2′-p-phenylenebis(oxazole)) in the channels of zeolite L crystals was investigated by means of fluorescence microscopy and single-crystal imaging. Qualitative observations led to the result that the transition moment of POPOP is aligned along the c-axis of the hexagonal crystals whereas the fluorescence of Ox + and Py + is not. More detailed investigations on Ox + showed a cone-shaped distribution of the transition moments with a half-cone angle of 72°. The orientation of the transition dipole moment for all of these molecules is parallel to the molecules' long axis. We found by means of space-filling arguments that POPOP, the van der Waals length of which is about 21 Å, can only be aligned along the channel axis. This is in full agreement with the observed fluorescence anisotropy. For Ox + and Py + , geometrical arguments based on the zeolite L structure give room for only two possible arrangements of the molecules' long axis: a half cone angle of up to 40°for Ox + and up to 30°for Py + , and an angle of about 90°for both of them with respect to the c-axis of zeolite L. The surprising discrepancy between geometrical considerations and the results of the fluorescence measurements can be explained by assuming that Ox + and Py + are exposed to a considerable anisotropic electrical field in the zeolite channels.

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