Synthesis and characterization of diblock copolymers based on poly(3-hexylthiophene) and photo-responsive poly(methyl methacrylate-random-2-methyl methaspirooxazine)

摘要

The rod–coil diblock copolymers combining the conductive feature of a conjugated polymer and nanoscale morphologies arising from microphase separation of dissimilar blocks are attractive as potential materials for electronic applications. Herein, we report on the synthesis and properties of a novel diblock copolymer containing a rod-block of regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and poly(methyl methacrylate-random -2-methyl methaspirooxazine) (P3HT-b -P(MMA-r -MSp)) as photo-responsive coil-block. Well-defined rod–coil P3HT-b -P(MMA-r -MSp) diblock copolymers with average molecular weight of around 10,000 and low molar mass dispersities (D _(M)) below 1.5 were successfully synthesized via the combination of quasi-living Grignard metathesis polymerization and atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). Post-polymerization end-group modifications of the as-obtained P3HT were then successfully realized to give a macroinitiator for the ATRP of MMA and MSp co-monomers, resulting in the P3HT-b -P(MMA-r -MSp) diblock copolymers. The structure and properties of the resulting diblock copolymers were characterized by proton nuclear magnetic resonance (~(1)H NMR), gel permeation chromatography, Fourier transform infrared, UV–visible spectroscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry.