Three-Component Regio- and Stereoselective Polymerizations toward Functional Chalcogen-Rich Polymers with AIE-Activities

Polymers containing
rich chalcogen elements are rarely reported
due to the lack of facile synthesis methods. Herein, a novel multicomponent
polymerization route toward chalcogen-rich polymers was introduced.
A series of poly­(vinyl sulfones) (PVSs) were synthesized at room temperature
using readily prepared monomers. PVSs were generated with high regio-
and stereo-selectivity in high yields (up to 92.3%). Rich chalcogen
elements endowed PVSs with distingctive multifunctionalities. The
PVSs possessed good solubility and film-forming ability. Their thin
films exhibited outstanding refractive indices up to 1.8062 at 550.0
nm together with good optical transparency in the visible region.
Thin films of some polymers can also be fabricated into well-resolved
fluorescent photopatterns by photolithography. Thanks to the unique
redox properties of selenium, postmodification by oxidation reaction
of P1a/2/3a successfully eliminates
the caused heavy atom effect and endow resulting polymers with novel
functionality as fluorescent bioprobes for cellular imaging.