Organic Linear Conductors as Systems for the Study of Electron-Phonon Interactions in the Organic Solid State

A model calculation shows that each phonon band which couples to the electron density in an organic linear-chain semiconductor effectively develops an infrared activity along the chain axis. The origin of the effect lies in phase oscillations of additional charge-density-wave distortions which inevitably arise in the presence of electron-phonon interactions. This suggests that organic linear conductors may constitute unique systems for the study of electron-phonon interactions in the organic solid state.