Proceedings of MATSUS Fall 2023 Conference (MATSUSFall23)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29363/nanoge.matsus.2023.002
Publication date: 18th July 2023
Chemical and electrochemical doping are widely used to modulate the electrical properties of conjugated polymers. Doping of thin films facilitates fundamental spectroscopic studies and, ultimately, is important for the operation of devices from transistors to solar cells. However, some applications such as thermoelectrics and wearable electronics require bulk materials, which complicates doping processes and mass transport, limiting the performance of devices. This talk will explore some of the fundamentals of doping of both thin films and bulk materials. The impact of doping on the electrical as well as mechanical properties will be discussed, and it is shown how doping can be used to tune both the conductivity and stiffness of conjugated polymers. Finally, strategies are explored that permit to decouple the effect of doping on the electrical and mechanical properties, which can be used to prepare a variety conducting bulk materials, from stiff composites and foams to hydrogels and stretchable fibers.