Abstract
The electrochemical and electro-optical behavior of aqueous solutions of diheptyl viologen dibromide on tin oxide conductive glass electrodes was investigated. The viologen dication was found to undergo reduction in two distinct cathodic processes. The first cathodic step leading to the formation of the insoluble purple viologen complex was found to be reversible. The second reduction process was found to be irreversible and resulted in poisoning of the electrode surface. The failure mode of display devices based on the viologen system is attributed to the formation of this second reduction product.

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