The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

Fluorescent polymers have been widely used in sensing, imaging, drug delivery, and optoelectronics. While their fluorescence is often enhanced by incorporating strongly emissive moieties, the role of polymer structure, chain length, and solvent on fluorescence behavior remains poorly understood. Here, we synthesized three non-conjugated fluorescent polymers via ROMP with varied degrees of polymerization (DP). Each moiety acts as both a fluorophore and a regulator of intrachain interactions. One polymer with a planar moiety exhibits DP-dependent intra-stacking that continuously modulates emission. Another nonplanar polymer shows DP-dependent spectral evolution in an intra-stacking-promoting solvent, with an isosbestic point. Finally, the third polymer shows enhanced fluorescence with increasing DP driven by AIE. This study establishes a systematic understanding of polymer-structure-dependent fluorescence in non-conjugated polymers.