CHEMICAL INSERTION OF ORGANIC CATIONS INTO POLYACETYLENE - KINETICS AND DOPING LEVEL CONTROL

The kinetics of the chemical insertion of tetraalkylammonium cations into Shirakawa polyacetylene films is entirely controlled by the interfibrillar diffusion of the dopant. The maximum doping level Ymax achieved at the end of the reaction is limited not only by the redox potential of the reductor used, but also by the size of the inserted cation and the chemical stability of the doped sites. Homogeneously doped films can be prepared by chemical doping using thermodynamic control of the doping level, or by an ion-exchange technique. © 1990.