Conjugated polymers containing donor and acceptor groups have received considerable attention as possible light-harvesting materials. One area of research that remains largely unexplored is the incorporation of fulvene-based donor/acceptor moieties within the polymer backbone. The unique structure-property relationships associated with fulvenes are promising in the field of organic electronics. In this work, dibromo-substituted 1,3,6-triphenylfulvenes were copolymerized via palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling and 1,3-diphenyl-6-norbornenylfulvenes were polymerized via ROMP to form the first reported examples of fulvene-containing polymers that keep the fulvene core intact. The synthesized polymers were characterized by NMR, ATR-FTIR, GPC, TGA, DSC, UV-Vis, and fluorescence measurements. Model reactions and DFT calculations were also performed on small molecule fulvene chromophores prior to polymerization reactions to support experimental observations of the chain-extended systems. Possible applications of these cross-conjugated polyfulvene in relation to the field of organic electronic materials will also be addressed.

Synthesis of fulvene containing polymers for use in light-harvesting material

251st National Meeting (2016)

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