Iron-Catalyzed Polymerization of Alkoxysulfonate-Functionalized 3,4-Ethylenedioxythiophene Gives Water-Soluble Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) of High Conductivity

Chemical polymerization of a 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene derivative bearing a sulfonate group (EDOTS) is reported. The polymer, PEDOT-S, is fully water-soluble and has been produced by polymerizing EDOT-S in water, using Na2S2O8 and a catalytic amount of FeCl3. Elemental analysis and XPS measurements indicate that PEDOT-S is a material with a substantial degree of self-doping, but also contains free sulfate ions as charge-balancing counterions of the oxidized polymer. Apart from self-doping PEDOT-S, the side chains enable full water solubility of the material; DLS studies show an average cluster size of only 2 nm. Importantly, the solvation properties of the PEDOT-S are reflected in spin-coated films, which show a surface roughness of 1.2 nm and good conductivity (12 S/cm) in ambient conditions. The electro-optical properties of this material are shown with cyclic voltammetry and spectroelectrochemical experiment reveals an electrochromic contrast (similar to 48% at lambda(max) = 606 nm).