HOST GUEST COMPLEXATION - A STRATEGY FOR THE ELECTROSYNTHESIS OF ENCAPSULATED MOLECULAR WIRES/

A new strategy which allows the electrosynthesis of polybithiophene (P BT) from aqueous medium is reported. It uses host/guest complexation, without any covalent bonds being formed prior to the electropolymeriza tion step, hydroxypropyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP beta CD) being the host , bithiophene being the guest. IRTF and XPS spectroscopies show i) tha t PBT/HP beta CD films seem similar to that of PET films achieved in o rganic media and ii) that cyclodextrins persist in the films despite e xtensive rinsing. MS-MALDI analyses show that HP beta CD are not graft ed on the polymer backbone. The abnormal solubility in DMF, DMSO, THF of PT films electrosynthetized in aqueous HP beta CD solutions, associ ated with a high conjugation length (UV vis) and SEC or MS-MALDI analy ses suggest that the polymer chains may be partially encapsulated by c yclodextrins.