Olefin metathesis: A route to conjugated metallopolymers

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Metal-containing polymers (metallopolymers) are a class of materials in which metal centres can introduce properties and functions that complement state-of-the-art organic macromolecules. This proposal details a novel, yet simple, synthetic strategy towards of a new class of functional, conjugated metallopolymers via polymerisation routes based on olefin metathesis. The proposed research involves study of viable cyclic metal-containing molecules for polymerisation, mechanistic understanding of the polymerisation process, and analysis of the structure-function relationship in the polymeric materials. This strategy will significantly improve the synthetic scope towards main-chain metallopolymers, enabling the generation of a diverse library of processable materials in which the electronic structure can be altered in a modular fashion by simple synthetic modifications, enabling band gap tuning to access insulating, semiconducting and conducting materials. The incorporation of metals into conjugated polymer chains is of great interest due to enhancement of spin-orbit coupling, facilitating an increase in triplet excited state population for use in both light-emitting diodes and photovoltaic technologies. Additional applications include electrocatalysis, stimuli-responsive and sensing materials, and patternable precursors to magnetic materials.