Multicolor emission and thin film transistor properties of 1,8-diethynylcarbazole-based conjugated copolymers

1,8-Carbazole-based conjugated copolymers are synthesized by the Sonogashira polycondensation between the 1,8-diethynylcarbazole derivative and dibromo comonomers. The resulting polymers are fully characterized by GPC, and 1H NMR and IR spectroscopies, and their high thermal stability with the 5% decomposition temperature exceeding 350 °C by thermogravimetric analyses. The optical properties of the carbazole polymers reveal that the comonomer structures significantly affect the absorption and emission spectra. For example, a bathochromic shift of the spectra is achieved when electron-accepting comonomers are selected, finally leading to the production of additive primaries. The mixtures of three carbazole polymers with red, green, and blue emission colors provide a white light emission both in solutions and in thin solid films. In addition, the thin film transistor properties of the carbazole polymers are investigated. The 1,8-carbazole-based polymers display an intermediate mobility between the 2,7-carbazole and 3,6-carbazole-based counter polymers. All these results suggest the potential application possibilities of the 1,8-carbazole-based conjugated polymers in optoelectronic devices.