Novel light-emitting diodes involving heterocyclic aromatic conjugated polymers

We report the fabrication and properties of three-, four-, and five-layer electroluminescent devices fabricated from light emissive N-based heterocyclic novel polymeric derivatives of PPP and PPV with which they are isoelectronic. They include poly(pyridine vinylene), (PPyV), and poly(2,5-dihexadecanoxy phenylene vinylene pyridyl vinylene), (PPV.PPyV). Some of the devices operate in both forward and reverse bias modes thus enabling operation in an ac mode. One type of device has the general construction: M/I/polymer/I/ITO where M equals Cu or Al, I equals polyaniline (emeraldine base, EB) or poly(3-hexylthiophene), (P3HT), and polymer equals PPV.PPyV. Under low frequency ac (sinusoidal) driving, light pulses with twice the driving frequency were observed in a device where M equals Al or Cu, I equals EB and polymer equals PPV.PPyV; and in a device where M equals Al, I equals P3HT and polymer equals PPV.PPyV. In the latter device the electroluminescence spectrum in the reverse bias mode differed from that in the forward bias mode. It was also shown that blends of PPyV in Nylon 6,6 exhibit a lower operating voltage than the pure polymer.