Poly(alkylacetylenes): a new class of highly luminescent polyacetylenes

It is generally believed that monosubstituted polyacetylenes are unlikely candidates for photoluminescence (PL) materials, but we demonstrate here that poly(alkylacetylenes) are a class of highly luminescent monosubstituted polyacetylenes. Poly(alkylacetylenes) -{HC=C[(CH2)(m)R]}(n)- with R = OCO-Biph-OC7H15 [m = 2(2), 3(3), 4(4), 9(5)], CO2(CH2)(6)OCO-Biph-OC9H19 [m = 2(6), 8(7)], and OCO-Biph-OCOC11H23 [m = 4(8)] emit strong deep-blue light, readily observable by naked eyes under normal room illumination conditions. The PL intensity of (5) is at least six times higher than that of poly(1-phenyl-1-butyne), a well-known photoluminescent disubstituted polyacetylene. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.