Caprolactone-based bipyridine macroligands for novel ruthenium polypyridyl complexes for applications in dye-sensitized solar cells

In an attempt to reduce electrolyte loss in solar cells, the use of sold or quasi-solid state electrolytes is advantageous. The authors synthesized a metal contg. polymer via two synthetic pathways. In the first, a bipyridine-bisphenanthroline ruthenium metal complex with a hydroxy functionality was used as metallo-initiator for a living polymn. reaction with e-caprolactone in order to generate a metal complex with a well-defined polyester macro-ligand. In the second method referred as the macro-ligand chelation approach the synthesis consists of the P(e-caprolactam) polyester-contg. bipyridyl ligand, which was subsequently coordinated to the ruthenium metal. Absorption and emission spectra were used to verify incorporation of the macro-ligands, ruthenium content, the polyester structure, and the hexafluoroantimonate assocn