Practical synthesis of an amphiphilic, non-ionic poly(paraphenyleneethynylene) derivative with a remarkable quantum yield in water

Aggregation of poly( para-phenyleneethynylene)s is efficiently suppressed by introduction of branched oligoethyleneglycol side chains rendering the polymer backbone, which is readily obtained using an A(2) + BB' polycondensation protocol, soluble and highly emissive in aqueous environments.