Poly(phenylenevinylene)-type conjugated alternating copolymers: Synthesis and optical properties in solution

We have synthesized a series of new conjugated alternating copolymers containing oligo(p-phenylenevinylene) units of well-defined size and structure as conjugated chromophores in their main chain. In order to interrupt the conjugation between chromophores, the oligomers were linked to each other either via non-pi-conjugated silylene units or directly, but in a non-coplanar way. In this paper we describe the synthesis, the structural characterization and the optical properties in solution of these new copolymers.