Syntheses of potentially conducting polymers containing fluorine

The preparation and characterisation of a number of fluorinated monomers capable of electrochemical polymerisation is described. Their electrochemical characteristics and the products of polymerisation are discussed 4,5,6,7-Tetrafluoroisothianaphthene was synthesised and its chemistry investigated. Attempts to electrochemically polymerise this to give a potentially narrow band-gap conducting polymer were generally unsuccessful. Other analogous monomers were also found to be difficult to polymerise by this method. New fluorinated polyphenylylenevinylene oligomers and polymers have been prepared. In addition, potential routes to high molecular weight polytetrafluorophenylenevinylenes have been being investigated. Oligomeric poly-2,3,5,6-tetrafluorophenylenevinylenes were prepared via a self nucleophilic displacement of the para fluorine in cis and trans organometallic derivatives of corresponding cis and trans 1-halo- 2-pentafluorphenylethenes.The attempted preparation of poly 2,3,5,6-tetrafluorophenylene- vinylene via two different soluble precursor derivatives is described. 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoro-l,4-xylene-bis(dialkyl sulphonium halides) were prepared with view to the preparation of soluble precursor derivatives of F-PPV. Preliminary work polymerising 2,3,5,6-tetrafluorobenzene- 1,4-diethanal with 1,4-dilithium-2,3,5,6-tetrafluorobenzene did provide polyalcohol type precursor polymers to F-PPV, but requires further developement.