Perpendicular Organization of Macromolecules: Synthesis and Alignment Studies of a Soluble Poly(iptycene)

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Abstract
We describe herein a polymeric material that prefers to align perpendicular to a stretch-aligned polymer host in the solid state. Poly(iptycene) poly-1 was synthesized from monomer 1 under hyperbaric techniques via a Diels−Alder polymerization. Polarized excitation spectra of the anthracene end groups in this material in a stretch-aligned, solution-cast poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) film showed that the poly(iptycene) prefers to align normal (counter aspect ratio) to the stretching direction of the PVC. This is explained by a “threading” mechanism, whereby the PVC intercalates through the internal free volume presented by poly-1, similar to effects observed in small molecule iptycenes under similar conditions.