ORIENTATIONAL AND CONDUCTIVE PROPERTIES O F MESOMORPHOUS POLYPYRROLES

Side-chain liquid crystalline polypyrroles were synthesized in order t o get some anisotropic conducting materials. First smectic polypyrrole s were so obtained. They can be macroscopically oriented during their synthesis in an oriented mesophase, or after the polymerization. This orientation was checked by X-ray diffraction for mesogenic groups, and by small angle neutron scattering for the backbone conformation. The conductivity of these polypyrroles reaches 10(-3)-10(-4) S.cm(-1). Mea surements on oriented films show a marked anisotropy of conductivity.