New class of film-forming electrically conducting polymers

Conducting polymers consisting of a polycation, 7,7,8,8-tetracyanoquinodimethan anions (TCNQ−) and neutral TCNQ are described. Polycations employed were derived from poly-4-vinylpyridine, atactic and isotactic poly-2-vinylpyridine, poly-N-vinyl-imidazole, polyethyleneimine, poly-4-dimethylaminostyrene, and a copolymer of 4-vinyl-pyridine and styrene. These materials have an unusual combination of properties, not reported before for organic semiconductors, in that they are of high molecular weight, are soluble in organic solvents, and have conductivity controllable over several orders of magnitude by varying their content of neutral TCNQ. The highest conductivity observed so far for these materials is 10−3 Ω−1 cm.−1. In the solid-state conduction proceeds through an electronic mechanism.