PHYSICAL-PROPERTIES OF POLYPYRROLE FILMS CONTAINING DICYANOAURATE(I) ANIONS, PPY-AU(CN)(2)

Polypyrrole dicyanoaurate, PPy-Au(CN)(2), has been synthesized in thin-film form by electrochemical oxidation of pyrrole in aqueous or non-aqueous media. The film samples have been characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The room-temperature conductivity of one of the films (303 S cm(-1)) is one of the highest reported to date for any PPy-anion system. X-Ray diffraction studies show that the preferred orientation of the PPy chains in PPy-Au(CN)(2) is parallel to the anode surface. The films show excellent stability in air at room temperature, their conductivity decreasing by less than 2% over 50 days. The electrochemical properties of PPy-Au(CN)(2)-coated platinum electrodes have been probed in detail using cyclic voltammetric (CV) methods.