WConductive polymers or, more precisely, intrinsically conducting polymers (ICPs) are organic polymers that conduct electricity. Such compounds may have metallic conductivity or can be semiconductors. The biggest advantage of conductive polymers is their processability, mainly by dispersion. Conductive polymers are generally not thermoplastics, i.e., they are not thermoformable. But, like insulating polymers, they are organic materials. They can offer high electrical conductivity but do not show similar mechanical properties to other commercially available polymers. The electrical properties can be fine-tuned using the methods of organic synthesis and by advanced dispersion techniques.
WThe acenes or polyacenes are a class of organic compounds and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons made up of linearly fused benzene rings. The larger representatives have potential interest in optoelectronic applications and are actively researched in chemistry and electrical engineering. Pentacene has been incorporated into organic field-effect transistors, reaching charge carrier mobilities as high as 5 cm2/Vs.
WAMOLED is a type of OLED display device technology. OLED describes a specific type of thin-film-display technology in which organic compounds form the electroluminescent material, and active matrix refers to the technology behind the addressing of pixels.
WDielectric elastomers (DEs) are smart material systems that produce large strains. They belong to the group of electroactive polymers (EAP). DE actuators (DEA) transform electric energy into mechanical work. They are lightweight and have a high elastic energy density. They have been investigated since the late 1990s. Many prototype applications exist. Every year, conferences are held in the US and Europe.
WA flexible organic light-emitting diode (FOLED) is a type of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) incorporating a flexible plastic substrate on which the electroluminescent organic semiconductor is deposited. This enables the device to be bent or rolled while still operating. Currently the focus of research in industrial and academic groups, flexible OLEDs form one method of fabricating a rollable display.
WLinear chain compounds are materials composed of one-dimensional arrays of metal-metal bonded molecules or ions. Such materials exhibit anisotropic electrical conductivity.
WAn organic light-emitting diode, also known as organic electroluminescent diode, is a light-emitting diode (LED) in which the emissive electroluminescent layer is a film of organic compound that emits light in response to an electric current. This organic layer is situated between two electrodes; typically, at least one of these electrodes is transparent. OLEDs are used to create digital displays in devices such as television screens, computer monitors, portable systems such as smartphones, handheld game consoles and PDAs. A major area of research is the development of white OLED devices for use in solid-state lighting applications.
WPoly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-tetramethacrylate or PEDOT-TMA is a p-type conducting polymer based on 3,4-ethylenedioxylthiophene or the EDOT monomer. It is a modification of the PEDOT structure. Advantages of this polymer relative to PEDOT are that it is dispersible in organic solvents, and it is non-corrosive. PEDOT-TMA was developed under a contract with the National Science Foundation, and it was first announced publicly on April 12, 2004. The trade name for PEDOT-TMA is Oligotron. PEDOT-TMA was featured in an article entitled "Next Stretch for Plastic Electronics" that appeared in Scientific American in 2004. The U.S. Patent office issued a patent protecting PEDOT-TMA on April 22, 2008.
Wpoly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) is a polymer mixture of two ionomers. One component in this mixture is made up of sodium polystyrene sulfonate which is a sulfonated polystyrene. Part of the sulfonyl groups are deprotonated and carry a negative charge. The other component poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) is a conjugated polymer and carries positive charges and is based on polythiophene. Together the charged macromolecules form a macromolecular salt.
WPIDA, or poly(diiododiacetylene), is an organic polymer that has a polydiacetylene backbone. It is one of the simplest polydiacetylenes that has been synthesized, having only iodine atoms as side chains. It is created by 1,4 topochemical polymerization of diiodobutadiyne. It has many implications in the field of polymer chemistry as it can be viewed as a precursor to other polydiacetylenes by replacing iodine atoms with other side chains using organic synthesis, or as an iodinated form of the carbon allotrope carbyne.
WPoly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) is a conducting polymer based on 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene or EDOT. It was first reported by Bayer AG in 1989.
WPolyaniline (PANI) is a conducting polymer of the semi-flexible rod polymer family. Although the compound itself was discovered over 150 years ago, only since the early 1980s has polyaniline captured the intense attention of the scientific community. This interest is due to the rediscovery of high electrical conductivity. Amongst the family of conducting polymers and organic semiconductors, polyaniline has many attractive processing properties. Because of its rich chemistry, polyaniline is one of the most studied conducting polymers of the past 50 years.
WPolyaniline nanofibers are a high aspect form of polyaniline, a polymer consisting of aniline monomers, which appears as discrete long threads with an average diameter between 30 nm and 100 nm. Polyaniline is one of the oldest known conducting polymers, being known for over 150 years. Polyaniline nanofibers are often studied for their potential to enhance the properties of polyaniline or have additional beneficial properties due to the addition of a nanostructure to the polymer. Properties that make polyaniline useful can be seen in the nanofiber form as well, such as facile synthesis, environmental stability, and simple acid/base doping/dedoping chemistry. These and other properties have led to the formation of various applications for polyaniline nanofibers as actuators, memory devices, and sensors.
WPolydiacetylenes (PDAs) are a family of conducting polymers closely related to polyacetylene. They are created by the 1,4 topochemical polymerization of diacetylenes. They have multiple applications from the development of organic films to immobilization of other molecules.
WPolydioctylfluorene (PFO) is an organic compound, a polymer of 9,9-dioctylfluorene, with formula (C13H6(C8H17)2)n. It is an electroluminescent conductive polymer that characteristically emits blue light. Like other polyfluorene polymers, it has been studied as a possible material for light-emitting diodes.
WPolypyrrole (PPy) is an organic polymer obtained by oxidative polymerization of pyrrole. It is a solid with the formula H(C4H2NH)nH. It is an intrinsically conducting polymer, used in electronics, optical, biological and medical fields.
WPolystannanes are organotin compounds with the formula (R2Sn)n. These polymers have been of intermittent academic interest; they are unusual because heavy elements comprise the backbone. Structurally related but better characterized (and more useful) are the polysilanes (R2Si)n.
WPolythiophenes (PTs) are polymerized thiophenes, a sulfur heterocycle. The parent PT is an insoluble colored solid with the formula (C4H2S)n. The rings are linked through the 2- and 5-positions. Poly(alkylthiophene)s have alkyl substituents at the 3- or 4-position(s). They are also colored solids, but tend to be soluble in organic solvents.