Conformation and oxidation transformations in cis-polyacetylene films irradiated by an electron beam

The effect of an electron beam irradiation on cis—trans isomerization and oxidation in polyacetylene films is studied by IR spectroscopy. It is found that the irradiation treatment of the films results in the stabilization of the initial cis-conformation of polyacetylene and the decrease of the oxidation destruction of polymer chains. The effect of the conformation stabilization is most clearly seen in a long-duration storage of irradiated films under inert atmosphere at low temperatures. This effect is significantly less pronounced at high temperatures. The increase of the conformational stability of the irradiated polyacetylene films is supposed to be caused by the formation of transverse crosslinkages between the chains under irradiation.