Nickel(II)-catalyzed living polymerization of diazoacetates toward polycarbene homopolymer and polythiophene-block-polycarbene copolymers.
basic_science · Level V
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- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 35145107.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-022-28475-6 and PMC identifier 8831484.
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Abstract
Diazoacetate polymerization has attracted considerable research attention because it is an effective approach for fabricating carbon-carbon (C-C) main chain polymers. However, diazoacetate polymerization based on inexpensive catalysts has been a long-standing challenge. Herein, we report a Ni(II) catalyst that can promote the living polymerization of various diazoacetates, yielding well-defined C-C main chain polymers, polycarbenes, with a predictable molecular weight (M<sub>n</sub>) and low dispersity (M<sub>w</sub>/M<sub>n</sub>). Moreover, the Ni(II)-catalyzed sequential living polymerization of thiophene and diazoacetate monomers affords interesting π-conjugated poly(3-hexylthiophene)-block-polycarbene copolymers in high yields with a controlled M<sub>n</sub>, variable compositions, and low M<sub>w</sub>/M<sub>n</sub>, although the structure and polymerization mechanism of the two monomers differ. Using this strategy, amphiphilic block copolymers comprising hydrophobic poly(3-hexylthiophene) and hydrophilic polycarbene blocks are facilely prepared, which were self-assembled into well-defined supramolecular architectures with tunable photoluminescence.