Design and synthesis of processible functional copolymers

Novel tailor-made AB, ABAC, and ABAA type heteroaromatic copolymers, in which B represents an N-alkylpyrrole unit, were synthesized via Pd-catalyzed Stille polymerization and characterized by a variety of analytical techniques. MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry allowed the detailed characterization of polymer weight and determination of end groups. By varying the nature of the repeating monomer units and their sequence, copolymers with promising properties for photovoltaic devices could be obtained.