Conjugated polymers undoped

Figure 13 shows the irreversible conversion of a nonconjugated poly (p-phenylene pentadienylene) to a lithiun-doped conjugated derivative which has a semiconducting level of conductivity (0.1 to 1.0 S/cm) (29). Obviously, the neutral conjugated derivative of poly (p-phenylene pentadienylene) can then be reversibly generated from the n-type doped material by electrochemical undoping or by p-type compensation. A very similar synthetic method for the conversion of poly(acetylene-co-1,3-butadiene) to polyacetylene has been reported (30), Figure 14. This synthesis of polyacetylene from a nonconjugated precursor polymer containing isolated CH2 units in an otherwise conjugated chain is to be contrasted with the early approach of Marvel et al (6) in which an all-sp3 carbon chain was employed.

Some conducting polymers with a conjugated polyvinyl structure, such as polyacetylene and poly(phenylacetylene), seem likely to be energetic enough, and reactive enough, to give trouble undoped, if they actually have the supposed structure [7],... 

In the context of this chapter, we focus on the undoped or lightly doped 7i-conjugated systems that are commonly referred to as organic semiconductors. Conducting polymers, such as PEDOT PSS, plexcore, polyaniline, polypyrrole, and others are not addressed here as their charge transfer mechanisms are rather different and would warrant an article in its own right. 

Conjugated polymers, in the undoped state, present remarkable nonlinear optical properties23. The material which has been most thoroughly investigated ever since 197624 is polydiacetylene para-toluene sulfonate (PTS). The polydiacetylene backbone consists of a... 

This chapter is not meant to be a comprehensive review of undoped conjugated polymers. Rather, we consider the structural and electronic (mostly spectroscopic) properties of CPs from the perspective of their potential applications in electronics, which are discussed in the final section. 

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