The utilization of post-synthetic modification in opto-electronic polymers: an effective complementary approach but not a competitive one to the traditional direct polymerization process

In addition to the powerful direct polymerization of monomers, the post-synthetic modification route, involving the reaction between the polymer reactive intermediate and small molecule, is another approach for the preparation of functional polymers, which might not be obtained from their corresponding monomers through direct polymerization. This article reviews the recent progress of the utilization of the post functional strategy, for the preparation of new opto-electronic polymers, discusses the design and functionality of these polymers, and gives some outlook for further exploration in this field at the end of this paper.