A series of novel soluble poly(aryl ether ketone)s (PAEKs) based on 5,10-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)-15,20-diphenylporphyrin (cis-DHTPP), 4,4-(hexafluoroisopropylidene) diphenol (6FBPA) and 4,4-difluorobenzophenone (DFB) were synthesized and characterized by FT-IR, H-1-NMR, UV-vis and fluorescence spectroscopies. The intrinsic photophysical properties of porphyrins were preserved because of the absence of photoinduced electron transfer in the polymer chains. Investigation of the copolymers thermal properties indicated that these polymers had high glass transition temperatures and excellent thermal stabilities. The results of Z-scan and optical limiting measurements manifested that incorporation of the porphyrin chromophore into the main chain engendered the novel PAEKs with superior nonlinear optical properties and optical limiting function, which could be effectively tuned by varying the molar ratio of porphyrin monomers. (c) 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014, 52, 1282-1290