Organometallic single-chain polymer nanoparticles via intra-chain cross-linking with dinuclear μ-halo(diene)Rh(I) complexes

Abstract An approach towards the expansion of Rh(I)-containing single-chain polymer nanoparticles (SCNPs) using linear polymers and μ-halo(diene)Rh(I) dimers as cross-linkers in high dilution was explored. Initially, the effects of utilizing different anionic ligands, i.e., halides, together with various labile alkene ligands, such as ethylene, 1,5-cyclooctadiene and 1,5-hexadiene, on the stability and activity of the resulting Rh(I) cross-linking complexes were examined. While the ethylene complexes for bromide and iodide bridges resulted too unstable and the 1,5-cyclooctadiene ligand produced inert complexes, the 1,5-hexadiene ligands provided the proper equilibrium of stability and lability to achieve efficient polymer folding. Thus, a range of new organometallic nanoparticles could be obtained via a direct exchange between the 1,5-hexadiene labile ligands of the Rh(I) complexes, and the corresponding 1,5-hexadiene elements present in ROMP derived 1,5-polycyclooctadiene (PCOD) and 1,4-polybutadiene (PBD). Notably, SEC analysis of the single-chain nanoparticles both for PCOD and PBD revealed the expected decrease in the hydrodynamic radius (Rh) of the parent polymer, indicating that other anions can also be used as elements in the cross-linking moieties to form these organometallic nanoparticles. Moreover, all of the Rh-SCNPs displayed intrinsic semi-conductivities in the range of similar undoped organic conjugated polymers, expanding the possible uses of this methodology for many applications.