| Abstract: | Polysilanes were found to photoinitiate the polymerization of a variety of vinyl monomers including methyl methacrylate, styrene, ethyl acrylate and acrylic acid. Polymerization initiated by polysilane photolysis is rather insensitive to oxygen inhibition, which may make it especially suitable for polymerization of thin films. The initiation efficiency of poly(phenylmethylsilylene) in styrene was determined from dilatometry data to be 1 × 10?3. This rather low efficiency is counterbalanced by the very high extinction coefficient of polysilane polymers, ca. 4–8 × 103 per silicon atom. Possible reasons for the low initiation efficiency and reduced oxygen inhibition of polysilane photoinitiators are discussed. |
