Synthesis and characterization of a novel poly(p-phenylenevinylene) derivative carrying an oxadiazole side chain with improved electron affinity

Electroluminescent conjugated polymers based on poly(p-phenylenevinylene) ( PPV) have been a subject of interest due to their potential application in light-emitting devices (LEDs), Here an oxadiazole-containing PPV polymer, p oly[2-(5'-nonyl-1' ,3',4'-oxadiazole-2'-yl)-1,4-phenylenevinylene)], was sy nthesized through the Gilch route. The 1,3,4-oxadiazole unit was introduced as a side-chain into the PPV system to improve the electron affinily of th e polymer. The electrochemical investigation of the polymer indicates that the polymer electron affinity has been significantly enhanced, which can be comparable to CN-PPV. The polymer and its intermediates have been characte rized by various techniques such as FTIR, MS and NMR. (C) 2000 Elsevier Sci ence S.A. All rights reserved.