Density Functional Theory Study of the Structure and Energetics of Negatively Charged Oligopyrroles

First-principles calculations are used to investigate the electronic properties of negatively charged n-pyrrole oligomers with n = 2-18. Chains of neutral oligomers are bent, whereas the negatively charged oligomers become almost planar due to accumulation of negative charge at the end monomers. Isomers of short oligomers (n < 6) display negative electron affinity although the corresponding anions are energetically stable. For longer oligomers with n >= 6, the electron affinity is small and positive, slowly increasing with oligopyrrole length. Doping of 12-pyrrole with lithium atoms shows that negative oxidation states are possible due to electron transfer from dopant to oligomer at locations close to dopant. These 12-pyrrole regions support extra negative charge and exhibit a local structural change from benzenoid to quinoid structure in the C-C backbone conjugation. Comparison between neutral and doped polypyrrole (PPy) indicates that doped polymers displays a substantial depletion of the band gap energy and the appearance of dopant-based bands in the gap for a 50% per monomer doping level. It is predicted that Li-doped PPy is not metallic. (C) 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem 111: 2295-2305, 2011