Recent advances and innovations in the design and fabrication of wearable flexible biosensors and human health monitoring systems based on conjugated polymers

Wearable biosensors have received great interest as patient-friendly diagnostic technologies because of their high flexibility and conformability.The growing research and utilization of novel materials in designing wearable biosensors have accelerated the development of point-of-care sensing platforms and implantable biomedical devices in human health care.Among numerous potential materials,conjugated polymers(CPs)are emerging as ideal choices for constructing high-performance wearable biosensors because of their outstanding conductive and mechanical properties.Recently,CPs have been extensively incorporated into various wearable biosensors to monitor a range of target biomolecules.However,fabricating highly reliable CP-based wearable biosensors for practical applications remains a significant challenge,necessitating novel developmental strategies for enhancing the viability of such biosensors.Accordingly,this review aims to provide consolidated scientific evidence by summarizing and evaluating recent studies focused on designing and fabricating CP-based wearable biosensors,thereby facilitating future research.Emphasizing the superior properties and benefits of CPs,this review aims to clarify their potential applicability within this field.Furthermore,the fundamentals and main components of CP-based wearable biosensors and their sensing mechanisms are discussed in detail.The recent advancements in CP nanostructures and hybridizations for improved sensing performance,along with recent innovations in next-generation wearable biosensors are highlighted.CPbased wearable biosensors have been—and will continue to be—an ideal platform for developing effective and user-friendly diagnostic technologies for human health monitoring.

The short wave near-infrared fluorescence properties of two p-azaquinodimethane (p-AQM)-based conjugated polymers

The absorption,scattering,and autofluorescence of biological tissues in short-wave infrared re-gion(SWIR,900-1700 nm)are relatively low,so SWIR fluorescence usually has deeper pene-tration into living tissues,and can show a higher signal-to-noise ratio when used for imaging in vivo.However,there are few types of organic SWIR fluorescent materials currently.In this work,p-azaquinodimethane(p-AQM)with a quinoid structure is used as the acceptor unit,and car-bazole or fluorene with sp3 hybridization are used as the donor units,two conjugated polymers were synthesized.The quinone structure is conducive to the redshift of absorption and fluores-cence spectra,and the sp3 hybridization structure is conducive to weakening the aggregation quenching of polymer fluorescence.PF and PCz exhibited absorption peaks of 492 nm and 508 nm,respectively.The emission peaks of the two polymers are 920 nm and 950 nm,respec-tively,both in the short-wave near infrared region.The quantum yield(QY)of PF and PCz is 0.4%and 0.3%,respectively.

Electron Correlation Effects in Polaron-Pair Recombination in Conjugated Polymers

Within a Su-Schriffer-Heeger model modified to include electron-electron interaction and an external electric field, we investigate the dynamics of oppositely charged polarons in a polymer chain in the presence of both electron-phonon and electron-electron interactions under the influence of an external electric field. We adopt a multi-configurational time-dependent Hartree-Fock method for the time-dependent Schrodinger equation and the Newtonian equation of motion for a lattice. Our results show that the on-site Coulomb interaction is of fundamental importance and favors the recombination between the pairs of polarons, and the yield of excitons depends crucially on the strength of the on-site Coulomb interaction U. Furthermore, the influence of the nearest neighbor interaction V is also discussed.

Effects of polarons on static polarizabilities and second order hyperpolarizabilities of conjugated polymers

According to the one-dimensional tight-binding Su-Schrieffer-Heeger model, we have investigated the effects of charged polarons on the static polarizability, axx, and the second order hyperpolarizabilities, γxxxx, of conjugated polymers. Our results are consistent qualitatively with previous ab initio and semi-empirical calculations. The origin of the universal growth is discussed using a local-view formalism that is based on the local atomic charge derivatives. Furthermore, combining the Su Schrieffer-Heeger model and the extended Hubbard model, we have investigated systematically the effects of electron-electron interactions on αxx and γxxxx of charged polymer chains. For a fixed value of the nearest-neighbour interaction V, the values of αxx and γxxxx increase as the on-site Coulomb interaction U increases for U 〈 Uc and decrease with U for U 〉 Uc, where Uc is a critical value of U at which the static polarizability or the second order hypcrpolarizability reaches a maximal value of αxx or γxxxx. It is found that the effect of the e-e interaction on the value of αxx is dependent on the ratio between U and V for either a short or a long charged polymer. Whereas, that effect on the value of γxxxx is sensitive both to the ratio of U to V and to the size of the molecule.

Two-step dissociation of a polaron in conjugated polymers

We have studied the electric-field-driven motion of a polaron by solving the time-dependent SchrSdinger equation nonadiabatically and the lattice equation of motion simultaneously. It is found that the polaron may experience two sequent transitions under high fields; one is the transition from the subsonic to the supersonic state, and the other from the supersonic to dissociated state. The acoustic mode is decoupled from the charge when the polaron moves at a speed faster than the sound speed, and then the optical mode is decoupled at the second transition to make the polaron dissociate completely.

Cation-πinteractions regulate electrocatalytic water oxidation over iridium single atoms supported on conjugated polymers

Designing cost-effective and high-performing metal catalysts is significant for many renewable energy conversion technologies.Lowering metal loading without sacrificing activity and durability is highly desired for the catalyst design,especially for those reactions where the noble metals deliver the best catalyzing performance.Single-atom catalysts(SACs)with maximal metalatom utilization,homogeneous and tailorable active sites have emerged as promising catalyst candidates,where the local coordination structures of the metal atoms in SACs largely determine the reaction kinetics.Previous design strategies of constructing strong metal-support interactions can stabilize the individual metal atoms in SACs,but present obstacles to provide a flexible manipulation platform for elaborately tailoring the coordination structures to achieve performance optimization towards a specifically targeted reaction.Here,for the proof-of-concept study,we report a novel design of SAC with iridium(Ir)single atoms supported on conjugated polymer,in which the adsorption energies of reaction intermediates on Ir atoms and the reaction kinetics towards acidic water oxidation can be readily optimized through modulating the formed cation-πinteractions that can be tailored by adjusting the molecular structures of conjugated polymers.This strategy establishes a general route to develop targeted SACs for various catalytic reactions.

Near-infrared double-cable conjugated polymers based on alkyl linkers with tunable length for single-component organic solar cells

The photovoltaic properties of double-cable conjugated polymers are significantly influenced by the length of the alkyl linkers that connect donor backbones and acceptor side units. In this study, a series of 2-(3-oxo-2,3-dihydroinden-1-ylidene)malononitrile(IC)-based double-cable polymers with alkyl linkers ranging from C_8H_(16)to C_(16)H_(32)(Px, x = 8, 10, 12, 14, 16) were synthesized for single-component organic solar cells(SCOSCs). Among these, the linker length x = 12(P12) is found to optimize the power conversion efficiencies(PCEs) in SCOSCs. Specifically, PCEs increase from P8 to P12 and then decline from P12to P16. Detailed investigations of optical absorption, charge transport, and morphology provide insights into the underlying factors contributing to these PCE variations. The findings indicate that the exceptional photovoltaic properties observed in P12 can be attributed to three key factors: A delicate balance between enhanced charge separation facilitated by the increased spacer length and reduced crystallinity resulting from longer spacers, higher charge mobilities, and well-balanced hole/electron transport characteristics. This study highlights the critical role of linker length in determining the photovoltaic properties of double-cable conjugated polymer-based SCOSCs and offers valuable guidance for the design of novel double-cable conjugated polymers.

Alkyl-thiophene-alkyl linkers to construct double-cable conjugated polymers for single-component organic solar cells

In this work,semirigid linkers of the alkyl-thiophene-alkyl structure are developed to construct double-cable polymers.Three alkyl units,propyl(C3H6),hexyl(C6H12),and dodecyl(C12H24),are applied as semirigid linkers,yielding three double-cable polymers:PBC6-T,PBC12-T,and PBC24-T,respectively.PBC12-T which uses C6H12-thiophene-C6H12 linkers is found to exhibit the best device efficiency of 5.56%,while PBC6-T and PBC24-T with shorter or longer linkers yield device efficiencies of only 2.65%and 1.09%in single-component organic solar cells(SCOSCs).Further studies reveal that PBC12-T exhibits higher crystallinity and improved charge transport,resulting in better efficiencies.Our work provides an approach to construct double-cable conjugated polymers with long alkyl linkers,and it shows the importance of the linker length for the photovoltaic performance of SCOSCs.

Conjugated microporous polymers-scaffolded enzyme cascade systems with enhanced catalytic activity

Enhancing catalytic activity of multi-enzyme in vitro through substrate channeling effect is promis-ing yet challenging.Herein,conjugated microporous polymers(CMPs)-scaffolded integrated en-zyme cascade systems(I-ECSs)are constructed through co-entrapping glucose oxidase(GOx)and horseradish peroxidase(HRP),in which hydrogen peroxide(H_(2)O_(2)) is the intermediate product.The interplay of low-resistance mass transfer pathway and appropriate pore wall-H_(2)O_(2) interactions facilitates the directed transfer of H_(2)O_(2),resulting in 2.4-fold and 5.0-fold elevation in catalytic activ-ity compared to free ECSs and separated ECSs,respectively.The substrate channeling effect could be regulated by altering the mass ratio of GOx to HRP.Besides,I-ECSs demonstrate excellent stabili-ties in harsh environments and multiple recycling.

2D Conjugated Polymers Containing B←N Units for Improved Photocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution

Previous studies have demonstrated linear polymers embedded with B←N units display efficient photocatalytic hydrogen evolution performance,but their limited structural tunability restricts photogenerated carrier dynamics modulation.Current researches mainly focus on linear polymers,while the study of B←N units in the field of two-dimension conjugated polymers(2DCPs)photocatalytic hydrogen evolution remains an uncultivated ground.Herein,three 2DCPs containing B←N units were synthesized and their photocatalytic hydrogen production performance was investigated.Among them,the BN-Tz exhibited the best property with a hydrogen production rate of 89.5μmol·h^(-1),while BN-Ph and BN-TPB were only 26.4 and 8.5μmol·h^(-1),respectively.Comprehensive analyses showed that the remarkable photocatalytic ability of BN-Tz catalyst was mainly attributed to its superior transport and separation of photogenerated carriers,as well as the ability to construct a stronger built-in electric field and better planarity.Meanwhile,it was found that the manipulation of the electronic properties of the structures connected to the B←N unit could effectively regulate the molecular polarity,thus achieving the control of the electronic structure of the materials.This work extends the application of materials containing B←N units in photocatalysis and lays a good foundation for the subsequent design of photocatalysts containing B←N units.

Bioinspired Passive Tactile Sensors Enabled by Reversible Polarization of Conjugated Polymers

Tactile perception plays a vital role for the human body and is also highly desired for smart prosthesis and advanced robots.Compared to active sensing devices,passive piezoelectric and triboelectric tactile sensors consume less power,but lack the capability to resolve static stimuli.Here,we address this issue by utilizing the unique polarization chemistry of conjugated polymers for the first time and propose a new type of bioinspired,passive,and bio-friendly tactile sensors for resolving both static and dynamic stimuli.Specifically,to emulate the polarization process of natural sensory cells,conjugated polymers(including poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophen e):poly(styrenesulfonate),polyaniline,or polypyrrole)are controllably polarized into two opposite states to create artificial potential differences.The controllable and reversible polarization process of the conjugated polymers is fully in situ characterized.Then,a micro-structured ionic electrolyte is employed to imitate the natural ion channels and to encode external touch stimulations into the variation in potential difference outputs.Compared with the currently existing tactile sensing devices,the developed tactile sensors feature distinct characteristics including fully organic composition,high sensitivity(up to 773 mV N^(−1)),ultralow power consumption(nW),as well as superior bio-friendliness.As demonstrations,both single point tactile perception(surface texture perception and material property perception)and two-dimensional tactile recognitions(shape or profile perception)with high accuracy are successfully realized using self-defined machine learning algorithms.This tactile sensing concept innovation based on the polarization chemistry of conjugated polymers opens up a new path to create robotic tactile sensors and prosthetic electronic skins.

Enhanced n-Type Thermoelectric Performance of Conjugated Polymers Based on an Indandione-Terminated Quinoidal Unit through Comonomer Optimization

Comprehensive Summary Conjugated polymers(CPs)containing quinoidal units are promising in n-type organic thermoelectric materials because of their deep-positioned lowest unoccupied molecular orbital(LUMO)energy levels and planar conjugated backbones.Herein,three CPs have been synthesized by copolymerizing an indandione-terminated quinoidal unit with bithiophene derivatives.Owning to the high electron affinity of the indandione-terminated quinoidal unit,all polymers showed deep LUMO energy levels below-4.10 eV.Incorporating electron-withdrawing substituents(F or CN)on the bithiophene comonomer can further downshift the LUMO energy levels.As a result,a more efficient n-doping process can be realized when employing 4-(2,3-dihydro-1,3-dimethyl-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)-N,N-dimethylbenzenamine(N-DMBI)as the dopant.Ultimately,the polymer with CN substituents delivered the best thermoelectric performance with a power factor of up to 2.14μW·m^(−1)·K^(−2),because it possessed the lowest LUMO energy level among the three CPs.This work highlights that the modulation of LUMO energy level is an effective strategy to optimize the thermoelectric performance of CPs.

Structure-Property Relationship of Conjugated Polymers Utilizing Isomerized Fused Benzothiadiazole-Based Building Blocks

Only a few fused benzothiadizole(BTz)based conjugated polymers have been applied in organic field-effect transistors(OFETs),and their performances were low,mainly due to the lack of available building blocks and in-depth study of the relationship between structure and performance.Herein,we report two isomeric fused BTz-based building blocks(M1 and M2)and their copolymers PBTzVBTz-T and PBTzVBTz-TT,PTVT-T and PTVT-TT.DFT study showed all polymers had nearly planar backbone geometries,and PBTzVBTz-TT exhibited the most linear backbone.PTVT-T and PTVT-TT exhibited red-shift absorption spectra and deeper LUMO level than those of PBTzVBTz-T and PBTzVBTz-TT.Thin film microstructure study demonstrated PBTzVBTz-TT and PTVT-TT had edge-on molecular orientation,while the others had the mixed molecular orientation of edge-on and face-on.Furthermore,PBTzVBTz-TT had the longest coherence length in thin film.All these features of PBTzVBTz-TT resulted in its highest carrier mobility of 0.1 cm^(2)·V^(–1)·s^(–1) among these polymers.

A Cyano-Substituted Organoboron Electron-deficient Building Block for D-A Type Conjugated Polymers

The development of donor-acceptor(D-A)type conjugated polymers depends largely on the design of novel A building blocks.Herein,we report a novel A building block based on the cyano-substituted organoboron unit(SBN-3).Compared with the most common fluorine-substituted B←N unit,SBN-3 displays a significantly downshifted LUMO energy level because of the strong electron-withdrawing ability of cyano groups.In addition,due to the greater impact of cyano substitution on LUMO than on HOMO,SBN-3 exhibits a reduced band gap,nearinfrared absorption and fluorescence properties.The D-A type conjugated polymers based on the cyano-substituted B←N unit with thiophene-based units show narrow optical band gaps of ca.1.3 e V as well as distinctive electronic structures,i.e.,delocalized LUMOs and localized HOMOs.This work thus provides not only an effective approach to design strong A units but also a new electron-deficient building block for D-A type conjugated polymers.

Recent Progress in Donor-Acceptor Type Conjugated Polymers for Organic Field-effect Transistors

The recent progress in the design and synthesis of high-performance donor-acceptor conjugated polymeric semiconducting materials is reviewed from the perspective of multiscale structures.The multiscale of conjugated polymers is from the primary one-dimensional polymer molecular scale to the secondary polymer-chains interaction scale,and then to the tertiary polymer aggregate scale.This review focuses on the design and synthesis of polymer molecules,proposes new classification rules,and rationally summarizes the design strategies and modulation methods of polymers.We describe the recent progress from these three aspects:(1)the modification ofπ-conjugated backbone,(2)the evolution of the polymerization methods,and(3)the regulation of aggregate-state structure.

Acceptor-acceptor-type Organoboron Conjugated Polymers:Effect of Backbone Configuration on Thermoelectric Performance

The development of n-type polymer thermoelectrics lags far behind that of p-type ones in view of material diversity and performance.New structural insights into the thermoelectric performance are needed for efficient n-type polymer thermoelectric materials.Herein,we developed three acceptor-acceptor type organoboron polymers and investigated the effect of backbone configuration on thermoelectric performance.The three polymers are designed based on double B←N bridged bipyridine(BNBP)unit with monomeric thieno[3,4-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione(TPD),TPD dimer and TPD trimer as the copolymerizing units,respectively.The three polymers show similar low LUMO energy levels but different backbone configuration.Compared with the wavy backbone configuration,the pseudo-straight backbone configuration imparts the polymer with much enhanced crystallinity and electron mobility.As a result,after n-doping,the polymer with pseudo-straight configuration shows much higher electronic conductivity and power factor.We think these findings could serve as important guidelines for molecular design toward efficient n-type polymer thermoelectric materials.

A Stable Open-Shell Conjugated Diradical Polymer with Ultra-High Photothermal Conversion Efficiency for NIR-Ⅱ Photo-Immunotherapy of Metastatic Tumor

Massive efforts have been concentrated on the advance of eminent near-infrared(NIR) photothermal materials(PTMs) in the NIR-Ⅱ window(1000–1700 nm), especially organic PTMs because of their intrinsic biological safety compared with inorganic PTMs. However, so far, only a few NIR-Ⅱresponsive organic PTMs was explored, and their photothermal conversion efficiencies(PCEs) still remain relatively low. Herein, donor–acceptor conjugated diradical polymers with open-shell characteristics are explored for synergistically photothermal immunotherapy of metastatic tumors in the NIR-Ⅱ window. By employing side-chain regulation, the conjugated diradical polymer TTB-2 with obvious NIR-Ⅱ absorption was developed, and its nanoparticles realize a record-breaking PCE of 87.7% upon NIR-Ⅱ light illustration. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrate that TTB-2 nanoparticles show good tumor photoablation with navigation of photoacoustic imaging in the NIR-Ⅱ window, without any side-effect. Moreover, by combining with PD-1 antibody,the pulmonary metastasis of breast cancer is high-effectively prevented by the efficient photo-immunity effect. Thus, this study explores superior PTMs for cancer metastasis theranostics in the NIR-Ⅱ window, offering a new horizon in developing radical-characteristic NIR-Ⅱ photothermal materials.

Chlorinated Effects of Double-Cable Conjugated Polymers on the Photovoltaic Performance in Single-Component Organic Solar Cells

The recently emerged double-cable conjugated polymers have come into focus due to their significantly improved power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) in single-component organic solar cells (SCOSCs). In this work, the effect of chlorination in double-cable conjugated polymers with linear benzodithiophene backbone and pendant perylene bisimide on the photovoltaic performance in SCOSCs has been studied. After introducing chlorine atoms into conjugated side chains, the highest occupied molecular orbital level of the conjugated polymers is down-shifted, thus resulting in a higher open-circuit voltage. As a result, the chlorinated double-cable conjugated polymer exhibits improved photovoltaic performance from 3.46% to 3.57%.

Effect of electron-electron interaction on polarization process of exciton and biexciton in conjugated polymer

By using one-dimensional tight-binding model modified to include electron-electric field interaction and electron-electron interaction,we theoretically explore the polarization process of exciton and biexciton in cis-polyacetylene.The dynamical simulation is performed by adopting the non-adiabatic evolution approach.The results show that under the effect of moderate electric field,when the strength of electron-electron interaction is weak,the singlet exciton is stable but its polarization presents obvious oscillation.With the enhancement of interaction,it is dissociated into polaron pairs,the spin-flip of which can be observed through modulating the interaction strength.For the triplet exciton,the strong electron-electron interaction restrains its normal polarization,but it is still stable.In the case of biexciton,the strong electron-electron interaction not only dissociate it,but also flip its charge distribution.The yield of the possible states formed after the dissociation of exciton and biexciton is also calculated.

Double-Cable Conjugated Polymers with Fullerene Pendant for Single-Component Organic Solar Cells

In this work,the“functionalization-polymerization”(FP)method has been used to construct fullerene-contained double-cable conjugated polymers with“donor-acceptor”backbones.It was realized via synthesizing a fullerene-contained monomer and performing Stille polymerization.With this method,a series of double-cable conjugated polymers with different fullerene contents were developed and applied into single-component organic solar cells.The power conversion efficiencies(PCEs)based on these polymers increased from 0.71%to 1.71%with the enhanced fullerene contents.The relatively low PCEs might be originated from the poor microstructure in these polymers.These new conjugated polymers with molecular heterojunction would show potential application in organic electronic devices.