Conducting polymers

Claim 1

An electrically conducting composition comprising: (a) a polyarylene of structure --(Ar).sub.n (X).sub.m wherein the residues Ar and X, where X is present, may vary from unit to unit in the polymer chain, Ar represents a divalent aromatic or substituted aromatic group, X is a residue of one or more polymerisable comonomers selected from the group consisting of styrene, methacrylates, vinyl halides, vinyl esters, acrylonitrile, tetrafluoroethylene, and sulphur dioxide, n and m are whole numbers and the ratio of n:m lies in the range of 1:0 to 1:100, which polyarylene is prepared from a poly(1,2-disubstituted cyclohexa-3,5-diene) of structure ##STR5## wherein the cyclohexenylene ring and the residue X, where X is present, may vary from unit to unit along the polymer chain, each z, which may be the same or different, is amide, halide, thioester, urethane, xanthate, or OR 1 , where R 1 is hydrogen, lower alkyl having up to five carbon atoms, aroyl, alkanoyl having up to ten carbon atoms or R 2 OCO where R 2 is aryl or alkyl having up to ten carbon atoms, X, n and m have the meanings above-ascribed to them; and (b) a suitable doping agent selected from the group consisting of Group IA metals, Group IA metal arenes, Bronsted acids, non-metal oxides, Group VB sulphides, and halides of Groups VB, VIA, IB, IIB, IVB and the inert gases.