Surface grafting of electrochemically crosslinked poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) brushes via surface-initiated ring-opening metathesis polymerization

Herein we demonstrated the preparation of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) containing polynorbornylene brushes on Au surfaces via surface-initiated ring-opening metathesis polymerization (SI-ROMP). Using solid-state oxidative crosslinking technique, these polymer brushes were electrochemically converted to conjugated polymer networks. Grazing-angle FTIR spectra of polymer brushes clearly showed the characteristic vibrations of EDOT and norbornylene groups. Furthermore, densely covered Au substrates with polynorbornylene brushes were characterized by using scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy.