Two new poly(p-phenylenevinylene) (PPV) derivatives containing oxadiazole moiety (OXA-PPV1 and OXA-PPV2) were synthesized by the Wittig condensation polymerization reaction. Their thermal and light-emitting properties were investigated. The single- and triple-layer electroluminescent (EL) devices with configurations of ITO/polymer/Al and ITO/polymer/OXD-7/Alq(3)/Al were fabricated. They exhibited blue emission at 470 nm for 0XA-PPV1 and green emission at 560 nm for OXA-PPV2. The turn-on voltages of triple-layer device were 11 V for OXA-PPV1 and 8 V for OXA-PPV2. The triple-layer EL devices showed much better performance than did the single-layer devices. The spectra indicated energy transfer occurred from segments of side chain to polymer backbone. (C) 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.