Electrochemical copolymerization of 9,10-dihydrophenanthrene and 3-methylthiophene and characterization of their copolymer with tunable fluorescence properties

Electrochemical copolymerization of 9,10-dihydrophenanthrene and 3-methylthiophene was successfully achieved in boron trifluoride diethyl etherate by direct anodic oxidation of the monomer mixtures. The structure and properties of the copolymers were investigated with ultraviolet–visible, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance, fluorescence spectra, and thermal analysis. The novel copolymers had the advantages of both poly(9,10-dihydrophenanthrene) and poly(3-methylthiophene), such as good electrochemical behavior, good mechanical properties, and high electrical conductivity. Fluorescence spectroscopy studies revealed that the copolymers had good fluorescence properties, and the emitting properties of the copolymer could be parameters by changing the feed ratio of the monomer mixtures during the electrochemical polymerization.