POLYSILANES WITH VARIOUS ARCHITECTURES

Copolymers and homopolymers containing silicon atoms connected to three and four other silicon atoms have been prepared and characterized. We report the first evidence of dendritic polymers with silicon backbones. Copolymers made from RSiCl3 and R1R2SiCl2 resemble hybrid materials of polysilyne and polysilanes. Polymers, which contain tetrasilyl-substituted Si atoms, [(SiMe2)4Si]n and (Si)m(Me2Si)n, have also been synthesized. These molecules appear to be the first hyperbranched polymers, which have applications based on their electronic properties. The properties of these molecules fit into the hierarchy of 1-D to 3-D topologies known for Si materials.