High optical transparency and low dielectric constant of novel organosoluble poly(ether ketone amide)s derived from an unsymmetrical diamine containing trifluoromethyl and methyl pendant groups

A series of novel fluorinated poly(ether ketone amide)s (PEKAs) were prepared from an unsymmetrical aromatic diamine, (4′-(4″-amino-2″-trifluoromethylphenoxy)-3′,5′-dimethylphenyl)(4-aminophenyl)-methanone (1), with various aromatic dicarboxylic acids using the phosphorylation polycondensation technique. The PEKAs had inherent viscosities ranging from 0.43 to 0.65 dl/g. All the fluorinated PEKAs could be soluble in many polar organic solvents such as N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP), N,N′-dimethylacetamide (DMAc), N,N′-dimethylformamide (DMF), dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), and tetrahydrofuran (THF). Flexible and tough polymer films could be prepared by casting from DMAc solvent. The PEKA films exhibited high optical transparency with a cutoff wavelength of 354–365 nm and good mechanical properties with tensile strengths of 78–98 MPa and elongations at break of 11.5–18.5%. They showed glass-transition temperatures in the range of 288−323 °C and the onset decomposition temperatures in the range of 450−461 °C in nitrogen atmosphere. Meanwhile, the PEKA films possessed low dielectric constants of 1.98–2.71 at 1 MHz and low moisture absorption (<2%). Due to their properties, the fluorinated PEKAs could be considered as photoelectric and microelectronic materials.