Synthesis of an amphiphilic π-conjugated triblock copolymer of poly(9,9-didodecylfluorene-2,7-diyl) and poly(hydroxyl ethyl methacrylate)

A novel amphiphilic, symmetric rod-coil, triblock copolymer (denoted as PHEMA-b-PF-b-PHEMA) of poly(9,9-didodecylfluorene-2,7-diyl) (PF) and poly(hydroxyl ethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) was synthesized. A π-conjugated poly(9,9-didodecylfluorene-2,7-diyl) (PF) was used as a rodlike midblock segment and connected with hydrophilic end blocks of poly(hydroxyl ethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) by using an ATRP technique. The chemical structure of PHEMA-b-PF-b-PHEMA was confirmed by 1H-NMR and GPC, and its PL properties were investigated in selected solvents. Due to the dissimilarities in molecular conformation and solubility between PHEMA and PF blocks, both block segments were segregated to display a phase-separated morphology on a Si wafer.