Synthesis of Highly Insulated Conjugated Metallopolymers Containing Terpyridine–Metal Complexes

A bridging monomer with terpyridine moieties at both ends of the insulated conjugated chain was successfully synthesized. The synthesis necessitated a new strategy, in which FeII was employed as a removable water-solubilizing substituent. The monomer was able to coordinate with FeII, CoII, NiII, or RuII to give highly insulated conjugated metallopolymers. The high-coverage insulation suppressed the recombination of charge carriers relative to an uninsulated reference and provided higher charge mobility along the chain than the less insulated metallopolymer.