Solid state polymerization of cyanoacetylene into conjugated linear chains under pressure

Cyanoacetylene underwent polymerization reaction in a solid phase at pressures above 1.5 GPa. The Raman study of the reaction product showed that the polymer had a conjugated linear backbone with CN pendant groups. The Raman spectra for this substituted polyacetylene demonstrated a resonance behavior similar to that reported for trans-polyacetylene. The optical gap associated with the π–π* transition in the conjugated system was smaller than that of trans-polyacetylene, probably due to the resonance interactions between the CN triple bonds and the conjugated double bonds.