Extended π-systems in conjugated oligomers and polymers - the longer, the better?
Homologous series of extended oligomeric and polymeric rr-chains with arylene and arylenevinylene repeating units are investigated as a function of the chain length. Depending upon the nature of the building blocks and the mode of linking the chain-length dependance leads to fundamentally different chemical and physical consequences. An increase in dimensionality appears as a crucial step in the design and synthesis of molecular and supramolecular structures.