Adapting N-heterocyclic carbene/azide coupling chemistry for polymer synthesis: enabling access to aromatic polytriazenes.

A click by any other name: Coupling bis(N-heterocyclic carbene)s with bis(azide)s afforded a novel class of conjugated polytriazenes. These polymers were rendered electrically conductive upon doping, and fluorene-containing variants exhibited luminescence. This adaptation of N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC)/azide coupling chemistry to polymer synthesis reveals the potential of NHCs as building blocks for accessing polymers having useful electronic properties.