Electronic absorption and vibrational spectroscopies of conjugated conducting polymers

Conjugated conducting polymers constitute a subject of research lying at the interface between solid-state physics and molecular science. Electronic absorption and vibrational spectroscopies of doped conjugated polymers, whose ground states are nondegenerate, are reviewed from a viewpoint of molecular spectroscopy. Raman spectroscopy is a powerful tool for studying the structures of polarons and bipolarons, which are associated with electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of the polymers. Electronic absorption and Raman spectra of doped polymers have been analyzed on the basis of those of model compounds. These analyses have led us to the conclusion that polarons are the major species generated by doping in most nondegenerate conjugated polymers such as polythiophene, poly(p-phenylene), and poly(p-phenylenevinylene), in contrast with the previous view that bipolarons are the major species. The theoretical and experimental bases of these two contradictory views are discussed.