Oligomers are molecules composed of a small number of repeat units, conventionally fewer than about ten, joined by the same bonds that form a polymer, so they occupy the range between monomers and macromolecules [1]. Because the chain is short, properties that depend on entanglement or on long-range cooperative motion are absent, and the melting or softening behaviour is dominated by end groups and by the specific sequence of units [2]. Individual oligomers are discrete compounds with a defined molar mass, whereas a polymer is a distribution of chain lengths, and this distinction separates the two classes [3]. Oligomers retain the reactivity of their functional end groups, which allows them to be extended into higher polymers by further coupling [1].
- repeat unit
- degree of polymerization
- low molar mass
- end group
- step-growth
References
- Ly, H.V.; Parvez, M.; Roesler, R.; An Unusual Ligand in Copper Chemistry: Coordination Oligomers and Polymers Containing the [{CpMo(CO)2}2(μ,η2-Sb2)] Cluster. Inorganic Chemistry 2006, 45, 345-351, 10.1021/ic051406l.
- Yamaguchi, S.; Tamao, K.; Cross-coupling reactions in the chemistry of silole-containing π-conjugated oligomers and polymers. Journal of Organometallic Chemistry 2002, 653, 223-228, 10.1016/s0022-328x(02)01152-x.
- Puddephatt, R.J.; Macrocycles, catenanes, oligomers and polymers in gold chemistry. Chemical Society Reviews 2008, 37, 2012, 10.1039/b708622a.