Grafting of buckminsterfullerene onto polythiophene: Novel intramolecular donor-acceptor polymers

Conjugated polymer - fullerene composites have shown efficient photoinduced charge transfer. The attachment of a fullerene moiety to the conducting polymer backbone is expected to lead to materials with more intimate association of the donor/acceptor sites. Two approaches to the attachment of fullerenes onto polythiophene derivatives have been explored. In the first case, fullerene has been bonded to a bithiophene derivative which can be electropolymerized. In the second, solvent processable polythiophene copolymers were prepared and functionalized with fullerene. Both these systems exhibit electrochemical and optoelectrochemical properties for fullerene and the conducting polymer.