Polymerization of 2-chloro-3-substituted thiophenes proceeded with a stoichiometric amount of magnesium amide, TMPMgCl·LiCl, or a combination of a Grignard reagent and a catalytic amount of secondary amine in the presence of a nickel catalyst. Although the nickel-catalyzed polymerization with NiCl(2)dppe, which exhibited high catalytic activity in the reaction of bromothiophenes, was less effective, use of a nickel catalyst bearing N-heterocyclic carbene as a ligand was found to induce polymerization with controlled molecular weight and molecular weight distribution.

Revisiting Murahashi coupling, we found that it effectively allows polymerization of lithiated (hetero)arenes by nickel(II)-catalyzed polycondensation. Deprotonative polymerization of 2-chloro-3-substituted thiophene with n-butyllithium gave head-to-tail-type poly(3-substituted thiophene). Poly(1,4-arylene)s were obtained by the reaction of the corresponding dibromides through lithium-bromine exchange. A lithiated thiophene derivative obtained via deprotonative halogen dance also underwent polymerization to afford a bromo-substituted polythiophene.

Polythiophenes bearing a siloxane moiety in a substituent at the 3-position are prepared by deprotonative polycondensation of 2-bromo-3-substituted-thiophene with a bulky magnesium amide chloromagnesium 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine-1-yl lithium chloride salt (TMPMgCl•LiCl) catalyzed by a nickel complex. Deprotonation takes place at 60 °C for 1 h to form the corresponding thiophene magnesium species, which is subjected to the polymerization by addition of 0.1−5 mol % NiCl 2 (PPh 3 )IPr (IPr: 1,3-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)imidazole-2-yl). Polymerization proceeds in a highly regioregular manner, and the molecular weight of the thus-obtained polymer is controllable by the ratio of monomer feed/ catalyst loading to indicate M n of up to 280 000 with narrow molecular weight distribution. Chlorothiophenes are also found to induce polymerization in a deprotonative manner with TMPMgCl•LiCl or nBuLi (the Murahashi coupling polymerization). The obtained polymers bearing a siloxane moiety in the substituent is revealed to be dissolved in a hydrocarbon allowing formation of thin film from hexane.

Polymerization of thiophene with a Ni(ii) catalyst through halogen dance leads to a new class of polythiophenes.

Deprotonative metalation of chlorothiophene takes place with a catalytic amount of cis-2,6-dimethylpiperidine (DMP) and an alkyl Grignard reagent at room temperature for 3 h to give the corresponding thienyl Grignard reagent. Polymerization leading to head-to-tail-type poly(3-substituted thiophene) with the thus metalated chlorothiophene proceeds in the presence of a nickel catalyst bearing N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligand. Palladium catalyzed cross-coupling reaction with aryl bromides also gives arylated thiophenes in good to excellent yields whereas the C-Cl bond being intact.