Photocrosslinkable polymers with side tricyclic imidyl groups

A photo-crosslinkable polymer, which has an average molecular weight between 1,000 and 1,000,000, as measured by inherent viscosity on a 0.5% by weight solution in N,N-dimethylformamide or chloroform, and which has side imidyl groups of the formula (I) ##STR44## in which R and R.sub.1 independently of one another are hydrogen, halogen, alkyl having 1-4 C atoms or methoxy, A is --CH.sub.2 --, --CH.sub.2 CH.sub.2 -- or --OCH.sub.2 -- with the oxygen atom bonded to the aromatic ring and E is hydrogen, or A is --O-- and E is --CH.sub.3, the proportion of imidyl groups of the formula (I) being at least 5 percent, based on the number of recurring structural elements in the polymer, said polymer being a homopolymer or copolymer derived from monomers containing reactive C.dbd.C double bonds, wherein said polymer comprises

• (a) from 5 to 100 percent, based on recurring structural elements in the polymer chain, of molecular chain members selected from the group consisting of formulas (IV), (VI), (VII) and (X) to (XIV). ##STR45## in which imidyl is a radical of the formula (I), Y is alkylene having 1-30 C atoms, or is interrupted by hetero-atoms, or is cycloalkylene having 5 or 6 C atoms, a dicyclohexylmethane radical, arylene having 6-10 C atoms, or aralkylene or alkylarylene having 7 or 8 C atoms, or said radicals Y being substituted, and Q.sub.1 is hydrogen or methyl, R.sub.2 ' is --OH or --O.sup.- M.sup.+, M.sup.+ is an alkali metal cation, a pyridinium cation or a trialkylammonium cation having 3-24 C atoms, p is the number 1 or 2, q is an integer from 2 to 4, Z is --O--, --NH--, ##STR46## having 1-4 C atoms or --S--, Z.sub.1 is --OCO--, --NH--, --N--alkyl having 1-4 C atoms, --O-- or --S-- and Z.sub.2 is --O--, --S-- or --NH--, and
• (b) from 95 to 0 percent, based on recurring structural elements in the polymer chain, of structural elements of the formula (XVI) ##STR47## in which X.sub.1 and X.sub.3 are each hydrogen, X.sub.2 is hydrogen, chlorine or methyl and X.sub.4 is hydrogen, methyl, chlorine, --CN, --COOH, --CONH.sub.2, phenyl, methylphenyl, methoxyphenyl, cyclohexyl, pyridyl, imidazolyl, pyrrolidyl, --COO--alkyl having 1-12 C atoms in the alkyl moiety, --COO--phenyl, ##STR48## --COO--alkyl--OH having 1-3 C atoms in the alkyl moiety, --OCO--alkyl having 1-4 C atoms in the alkyl, --OCO--phenyl, --CO--alkyl having 1-3 C atoms in the alkyl,alkoxy having 1-6 C atoms or phenoxy, or X.sub.1 and X.sub.2 are each hydrogen and X.sub.3 and X.sub.4 together are the grouping ##STR49## or each are --COOH or --COO--alkyl having 1-6 C atoms in the alkyl.