2008 Macromolecular Science and Engineering Division Award Lecture — Conjugated polymers: From micro-electronics to genomics

Conjugated polymers have received a lot of attention, since they combine the best features of metals or semiconductors with those of synthetic polymers. For instance, solar cells based on poly(2,7-carbazole) derivatives have revealed power-conversion efficiencies up to 6%. This class of materials could lead to printable and flexible photovoltaic devices. Moreover, water-soluble luminescent polythiophenes have allowed the specific, rapid, and ultra-sensitive detection of unlabelled DNA, RNA, or proteins. This new optical detection mechanism is based on electrostatic interactions between a cationic polythiophene derivative and negatively charged oligonucleotides. This method makes now possible the rapid assessment of the identity of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), genes, and pathogens without the need for nucleic acid amplification.