Crystal polymorphism and enhanced dielectric performance of composite nanofibers of poly(vinylidene fluoride) with silver nanoparticles

Composite nanofibers of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVF₂) with silver nanoparticles are fabricated by electrospinning. According to the X-ray diffraction patterns and Fourier transform IR (FTIR) spectra, the content of piezoelectric β-polymorph of PVF₂ is enhanced in the composite fibers of PVF₂ and silver as compared with the pristine PVF ₂ raw materials and electrospun nanofibers. The differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) measurement indicates that the composite of PVF₂ and silver has higher melting point and crystallization temperature than that of pristine PVF₂ nanofibers. Moreover, the existence of silver nanoparticles greatly enhances the dielectric constant of PVF₂ nanofibers and keeps a low dielectric loss simultaneously, which mainly relates to the internal fibrous structure of the composite.