Well-Defined Redox-Active Polymers and Block Copolymers Prepared by Living Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization

摘要

Studies of electroactive polymers attached to the surface of electrodes havefocused more on electrochemical characteristics than on polymer structure. Modification of electrodes with such polymers in order to achieve molecular electronic functions, such as pH-dependent charge trapping and chemical sensing has been successful to some degree, but ideally one would like to be able to control the primary structure and the morphology of a polymer to a degree that would maximize the desired electrochemical properties. Such a goal becomes difficult, if not impossible, to achieve using traditional polymer synthesis techniques as the required polymers quickly become relatively exotic and complicated. The primary structure of an electroactive polymer, and ultimately its morphology (Lamellae, rods, or spheres), could be controlled if living polymerization techniques could be employed. Under such circumstances (no chain transfer or termination) the nature of the functionality at each end of the polymer, as well as the nature and length of blocks (containing a given monomer) in the polymer chain could be specified.