Статья посвящена крупному ученому и организатору науки, профессору Льву Михайловичу Блинову, посвятившему свою жизнь исследованию жидких кристаллов и организованных молекулярных структур. Лев Михайлович является основателем школы экспериментальных исследований органических пленок и жидких кристаллов в Советском Союзе, им воспитаны десятки молодых ученых, ставших кандидатами и докторами наук. Л.М. Блиновым написаны сотни научных статей, множество обзоров, монографий и учебников, читались лекции как в России, так и по всему миру. Кратко изложена биография Льва Михайловича, дан обзор его наиболее значимых достижений и отдельных публикаций, получивших широкий резонанс в научном сообществе. Приведены воспоминания учеников и коллег.

Spectral singularities of the ampere–watt sensitivity of photoelectric structures consisting of a transparent indium–tin oxide electrode, a photosensitive organic layer, and an aluminum electrode have been studied. The structures have been formed on a quartz glass substrate. The photosensitive layer has been vacuum-evaporated either from zinc phthalocyanine ZnPc (exhibiting donor properties) and C 70 fullerene (acceptor) organic precursors or from a ZnPc:Cr 70 donor–acceptor blend. Using computer simulation, the structure of absorption bands has been determined in a wide spectral range for all three above systems. This has made it possible to calculate the absorbed and reflected fractions of radiation incident on the sample and explain the singular spectral behavior of the ampere–watt sensitivity of the ZnPc:C 70 blend. It has been shown that the photosensitivity of the blend reaches a maximum near the overlap of the absorption bands of donor and acceptor molecules.

The photoelectric properties of thin films based on an organic composition of fullerene (C 60 ), zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc), and a ferroelectric copolymer of vinylidene fluoride with trifluoroethylene P(VDF–TrFE) are studied. Along with well-pronounced photoelectric properties (which are characteristic of fullerene–phthalocyanine mixtures), this material is shown to have ferroelectric properties as well. Ferroelectric switching of polarization is found to cause bistable switching of the photoelectric effect with a significant increase in the ampere–watt sensitivity in one of the polarized states. This effect is explained by a change in the built-in local electric field, which depends on the direction of the ferroelectric polarization vector and acts inside the cavities of the ZnPc/C 60 molecular heterojunctions.

Spectral properties of organic semiconductors (zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc), fullerene C70, and their mixture (ZnPc : C70) have been studied. The transmission spectra measured in the optical range of 240–1050 nm have been used to obtain spectral dependences of the complex refractive indices with application of numerical simulation methods. It is shown that the absorption spectrum of the mixed composition cannot be presented as a linear superposition of spectra of individual mixture components. The difference between the absorption spectrum of the mixture and superposition of the spectra of individual components is due to the interaction between zinc phthalocyanine and fullerene molecules. This interaction is most pronounced in the long-wavelength spectral region associated with the exciton excitations in ZnPc, where a significant increase in the absorption coefficient and the real part of the complex refractive index is observed.

The dependence of the ampere–watt sensitivity of a hybrid photoelectric structure, which consists of a transparent ITO electrode, a film of a mixture of organic semiconductors (zinc phthalocyanine ZnPc, and fullerene C 70 ), and a subwavelength aluminum grating as the second electrode, on the polarization and direction of an exciting light flux is experimentally studied. The efficiency of conversion of TM-polarized light into a photocurrent is found to increase manifold in the case of excitation on the side of the aluminum nanograting. The experimental results are explained in terms of a numerical model, which takes into account the plasmon contribution to the optical field inside the organic film in the case of TM-polarized light.

The results of spectral analysis of organic semiconductor, zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc), which is one of the best donor materials for solar power engineering but is relatively rarely used in practice, are reported. The study of the ZnPc spectral features was performed in three different directions: optical measurements of the absorption spectra of thin films, Stark spectroscopy with information about dipole moments and polarizabilities of molecules in the solid phase, and investigation of the photovoltaic effect in simple ZnPc-based heterostructure with variation in the active-layer thickness.

The electro-optic effect in three nanoscale heterostructures, in each of which a thin layer of dielectric or ferroelectric material is inserted between two planar metal electrodes, has been studied. Each structure has one aluminum layer, containing a subwavelength grating with a period of 400 nm, contacting with either the glass substrate or air. The light transmission spectra of structures with subwavelength grating contain characteristic plasmon dips. Short external-voltage pulses affect the change in the refractive index of the corresponding active layer. Significant values of these changes may be useful for designing optical modulators.

Specific features of light transmission and electroabsorption in a plasmonic nanostructure with organic semiconductor (zinc phthalocyanine, ZnPc) and subwavelength aluminum grating (Al Gr ) have been experimentally investigated. The glass–Al Gr –ZnPc–Al nanostructure was prepared using layer-by-layer deposition. First, only a part of the structure has been analyzed to check the grating quality. After deposition of an organic semiconductor (ZnPc) layer on the grating, the transmission of TE and TM polarized light through Al Gr and ZnPc layers upon excitation of plasmon resonances has been studied. Afterwards, a semitransparent aluminum layer has been deposited on the ZnPc layer (an additional electrode for measuring the electroabsorption effect). For TM polarized light, a multiple increase in the electroabsorption effect has been found (in comparison with a structure without subwavelength grating). This result can be explained by the Stark effect on exciton transitions and the presence of two cavities in the structure, which are related to the excitation of plasmonic states and the Fabry–Perot effect between aluminum electrodes. The presence of the cavities leads to a decrease in the group velocity of light and, accordingly, increases the density of exciton states, which are characterized by a large difference between polarizabilities in the excited and ground states.

Strong anisotropy of photocurrent excitation is observed in a hybrid photovoltaic structure comprising a film of organic-semiconductor blend and a subwavelength metal grating at one of the electrodes. The results are explained in the context of a numerical model demonstrating different characters of localization of optical fields with different polarizations and, correspondingly, the polarization-selective excitation of plasmons.

A new method of investigation of photoelectric properties of layered thin-film structures based on broadband Fourier spectroscopy exhibiting a harmonically modulated optical delay is proposed. In contrast to traditional approaches to study photoelectric properties, which are based on application of dispersive spectral devices, the proposed method allows not only simultaneously covering the ultraviolet, visible, and infrared spectral ranges, while demonstrating a wide dynamic range and high spectral resolution, but also easily varying low-frequency modulation of the action of light. The capabilities of the method are demonstrated using a polycrystalline organic heterostructure as an example. Its spectral sensitivity, speed, and specific detectivity are measured. A model and an equivalent electric circuit are proposed for explanation of the results of the measurements.