A novel aromatic diamine, 1,1-bis(4-amino-3,5-dimethylphenyl)-1-(3,4,5-trifluorophenyl)-2,2,2-trif luoro- ethane, containing a pendant polyfluorinated phenyl group, a trifluoromethyl group, and methyl groups ortho-substituted to the amino groups in the structure was synthesized and characterized. The diamine was polymerized with several aromatic dianhydrides, including 3,3,4,4'-biphenyltetracarboxylic dianhydride, 3,3',4,4'-benzophenonetetracarboxylic dianhydride, 4,4'-oxydiphthalic anhydride, and 4,4'-hexafluoroisopropylidene diphthalic anhydride, via a high-temperature one-step procedure to afford four polyimides (PIs) with inherent viscosities of 0.47-0.70 dL/g. The PIs exhibited excellent solubilities in a variety of organic solvents. They were soluble not only in polar aprotic solvents but in many common solvents, such as cyclopentanone, tetrahydrofuran, and even toluene at room temperature. The tough and flexible PI films cast from the PI Solutions exhibited good thermal stabilities and acceptable tensile properties. The glass-transition temperatures were in the range 312-365 degrees C, and the 5% weight loss temperatures were all higher than 480 degrees C in nitrogen. The films had tensile strengths in the range 76-99 MPa, tensile moduli of 2.2-2.8 GPa, and elongations at break of 5-8%. In addition, the PI films exhibited excellent transparency in the visible light region with cutoff wavelength as low as 302 nm and transmittance higher than 88% at the wavelength of 450 nm. The PI films showed low dielectric constants ranging from 2.50-2.68 and low moisture absorptions of less than 0.56%. The good combined properties of the PIs mainly resulted from the synergic effects of the different substituents. (C) 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 111: 2210-2219, 2009