Random poly(2,7-fluorenylenevinylene) copolymers obtained by a suzuki-heck reaction: Synthesis and properties

The study reports on the synthesis of poly arylene vinylenes by use of a cascade Suzuki-Heck reaction polymerization. The reaction between suitable aryldibromides with potassium vinyltrifluoroborate in the presence of a Pd(0) catalyst permits the access to a series of poly(fluorenylenevinylene)s. The protocol is characterized by a great versatility, deriving from the use of easily attainable substrates, and yields polymers with low percentages of structural 1,1-diarylenevinylene defects. Exploiting this procedure, a series of random poly(9,9-dioctyl-2,7-fluorenylenevinylene-co-N-octyl-3,6-carbazolyienevinylene) copolymers at 20 divided by 80% mol/mol of carbazole (PFV2-6) was achieved. Their properties have been investigated by H-1-NMR, IR, TGA, DSC, cyclic voltammetry, UV-Vis and photoluminescence, and compared to those of poly(9,9-dioctyl-2,7-fluorenylenevinylene) (PFV1) obtained by the same method. The electroluminescence properties of the materials were tested by constructing OLED devices of ITO/PEDOT-PSS/PFV1-6/Ca/Al configuration.