SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ALKYL-SUBSTITUTED POLY[E-1,2-(2,2'-DITHIENYL)ETHYLENE]S

3,3'-Dialkyl-substituted poly[E-1,2-(2,2'-dithienyl)ethylene]s (PDTEs) have been synthesized and characterized. The polymers are sufficiently soluble in common organic solvents and have been structurally characterized by NMR and FT-IR spectroscopies. The polymers, doped via chemical or electrochemical process, show a strong electrochromic effect. The films of substituted polymer are blue in the reduced form whilst the doped materials are quite transparent in the visible spectral region.