Polysilylenes transition temperature

Other Polysilylenes. The symmetrically substituted poly(di-n-tetra-decylsilylene) is reported to have a TGTG trans-gauche-trans-gauche ) conformation, and a bathochromic shift is observed in the UV spectrum at 54 °G with Xjnax shifting from 322 to 350 nm (35). The structures of many polysilylenes may be more complicated than what have been discussed thus far. As an example, the DSG data for PMHS are shown in Figure 24, The figure shows that Tg (glass transition temperature) is 220 K and that two... 

Order-Disorder Transitions. General Features, Experimental data are summarized in Table II, and representative thermochromic behaviors are shown in Figure 2. For the dialkyl-substituted polysilylenes the transition is very sharp, with a barely discernible coexistence region and an approximate isosbestic point. On the other hand, the asymmetrically substituted polymers, except poly(n-dodecylmethylsilylene), display very smooth behavior only in n-hexane solution and a broad but clearly discernible transition in dilute toluene solution. The transition width (ATc) in toluene solution was taken to be the interval between departure from the extrapolated, smooth, high-temperature behavior and the onset of peak absorption wavelength saturation at low temperature. The transition temperature (Tq) is defined arbitrarily as the midpoint of this region. 

Table II. Order-Disorder Transition Temperatures and Widths of High-Molecular-Weight Polysilylenes ...

The higher transition temperature of poly(n-propylmethylsilylene) in toluene compared with that of poly(n-hexylmethylsilylene) is especially significant, because these two polysilylenes have very similar free energies of defect formation (Table I), and poly(n-propylmethylsilylene) is characterized by a larger less side-chain screening of the backbone from toluene. 

In this chapter we describe results of TOF measurements on aliphatic polysilylenes and poly(di-n-butylgermylene) carried out over a broad range of temperature encompassing the glass transition temperature Tg, and the phase I - phase II (order - disorder) transition caused by side chain ordering and melting, which is accompanied by a blue shift in the uv spectra of the polymers. 

PDHS Structures in Solution. The determination of the chain conformation of polysilylenes in solution, particularly the conformations at temperatures just above or below the low-temperature thermochromic transition, is of great interest. NMR spectroscopy is one of the most useful techniques for probing chain conformation in solution (2i), and NMR is especially effective because of the large sensitivity of the carbon chemical shift to bond conformation (22). Silicon nuclei are also very sensitive to chain conformation, but a good correlation between silicon chemical shift and bond conformation has not been established yet. Unfortunately, both of these nuclei suffer from low sensitivity, primarily because of their low natural abundance. In contrast, protons have an essentially 100% natural abundance, but compared with the carbon or silicon chemical shift, the proton chemical shift is not very sensitive to bond conformation. Efforts to use NMR to probe the low-temperature dilute-solution conformation of the polysilylenes have been unsuccessful thus far. The diflSculty is that PDBS and PDHS precipitate from solution in 20-30 min after cooling through the thermochromic tran-... 

Although much has been learned about the structures of polysilylenes, a tremendous amount of work remains before a full understanding of these materials is developed. The microstructure of the polymers can be studied directly by solution NMR spectroscopic techniques. The determination of the chain conformation in solution is diflScult, particularly at low temperature. Light-scattering techniques may be able to establish the solution dimensions of the polysilylenes through the low-temperature thermochromic transition. The chain conformation in the solid state can be established by X-ray and electron difiraction methods. Solid-state Si NMR spectroscopy can become... 

Finally, solid films of some polysilylenes exhibit thermochromism and undergo true thermodynamic order-disorder phase transitions at much higher temperatures 18, 19, 47, 48) than in solution (typically, Tq 40-80 °C). In the context of the theory, a larger refractive index of the neat solid compared with that of the dilute solution results in a higher predicted Tq 21). However, we do not believe that the observed high TqS in films can be explained solely by this effect. Previous explanations have been made exclusively in terms of side-chain crystallization 18, 19, 48). Packing effects should be more important in the solid state, but both intramolecular and intermolecular packing effects must be carefully considered. Indeed, the fact... 

In all of the polysilylenes studied, the fluorescence from neat thin films on fused silica substrates exhibits a blue shift upon cooling. In cases where our studies have spanned the glass transition of the polymer, no change in behavior is seen (Figure 4). In the polymers which have substantial crystallinity, an abrupt shift in behavior occurs at the crystalline melting point above this temperature the films behave in much the same fashion as the fluid solutions. These phenomena have been extensively studied (9,12,13) and will not be treated here. 

At temperatures below the glass transition Tg, the investigated polysilylenes... 

The polysilylenes continue to be of interest because of the novel electronic and optical properties of these macromolecules. These properties stem from the presence of a o-delocalized -Si-Si- polymer backbone. The interplay between conformational states, side-chain order/disorder transitions, and electronic states creates interesting temperature and pressure dependent optical phenomena. These novel properties have stimulated interest in improved synthetic methods. Thus, the first three papers in this symposium focus on understanding and improving catalytic methods for generating silylene chains. These efforts are followed by Worsfold s research on improving the traditional Wurtz coupling method of synthesis. 

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