Synthesis of thiophene-based copolymers for application in dual layer ECDs

Dual layer electrochromic devices (ECDs) were constructed using copolymers synthesized from electron donor-acceptor-donor (D-A-D) monomers with thiophene-based donor moieties. Comonomers having different D-A-D structures were synthesized and successfully electropolymerized as uniform films onto ITO. The properties of the films depended on the acceptor moiety. Compared to the corresponding single layer ECDs, the dual layer devices exhibited genuine multicoloured EC behavior and improved operational characteristics. Further development of the dual layer ECDs is expected to lead towards optimized performance.