Conducting Polymers: From Novel Science to New Technology

摘要

On page 2103 of this issue, Lonergan describes a hybrid device in which an inorganic semiconductor and a conducting polymer are combined to create a diode, one of the fundamental building blocks of electronics (1). Polymers of the sort used by Lonergan, which become electrically conductive after being doped with electron donors or acceptors, have occupied an increasingly prominent place in physics, chemistry, and materials science since Shirakawa first reported his method for the polymerization of acetylene (2). Much research has since been motivated (and many grants funded) by the conviction that there is a huge potential for technological and commercial exploitation, yet the record reveals only a few truly successful products (3). What can we learn by examining the history of conducting polymers?