Elastomeric Conducting Polyaniline Formed Through Topological Control of Molecular Templates

A strategy for creating elastomeric conducting polyaniline networks is described. Simultaneous elastomeric mechanical properties (E < 10 MPa) and electronic conductivities (sigma > 10 S cm(-1)) are achieved via molecular templating of conjugated polymer networks. Diblock copolymers with star topologies processed into self-assembled elastomeric thin films reduce the percolation threshold of polyaniline synthesized via in situ polymerization. Block copolymer templates with star topologies produce elastomeric conjugated polymer composites with Young's moduli ranging from 4 to 12 MPa, maximum elongations up to 90 +/- 10%, and electrical conductivities of 30 +/- 10 S cm(-1). Templated polyaniline films exhibit Young's moduli up to 3 orders of magnitude smaller compared to bulk polyaniline films while preserving comparable bulk electronic conductivity. Flexible conducting polymers have prospective applications in devices for energy storage and conversion, consumer electronics, and bioelectronics.Carnegie Mellon Lian Ji Dan Fellowship; Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency [D14AP00040]; National Science Foundation [DMR 1501324]; National Institutes of Health [R21EB015165]; Natural Science Foundation of China [NSFC51273022, NSFC51373024]; Molecular Biosensor & Imaging Center in Carnegie Mellon University; Bruce and Astrid McWilliams FellowshipSCI(E)EIPubMedARTICLEhuaiyang@pek.edu.cn; km3b@andrew.cmu.edu; cbetting@andrew.cmu.edu65991-59981