Incorporation of thieno[3,2-b]thiophene moieties as novel electropolymerizable groups in a conducting metallopolymer and study of the effect on photostability

A novel nickel(II)-containing conducting metallopolymer utilizing thieno[3,2-b]thiophene moieties as the electropolymerizable groups is synthesized and characterized. A metal-free polymer is also obtained via electropolymerization of the title ligand allowing comparative studies of the electrochemical and spectroscopic properties of the polymer system in the presence and absence of nickel(II) metal ions. Photodegradation of the two polymers is studied along with an analogous system incorporating bithiophene as the electropolymerizable groups. Stability is found to be comparable between the metal-free thieno[3,2-b]thiophene- and bithiophene-based polymers; however, significant enhancement is observed in the thieno[3,2-b] thiophene-based nickel(II) conducting metallopolymer.