A low-cost, solution-processed, versatile, microfluidic approach is developed for patterning structures of highly conductive metals (e.g., copper, silver, and nickel) on chemically modified flexible polyethylene terephthalate thin films by in situ polymer-assisted electroless metal deposition. This method has significantly lowered the consumption of catalyst as well as the metal plating solution.

BACKGROUND Efficient cardiac function requires synchronous ventricular contraction. After myocardial infarction, the nonconductive nature of scar tissue contributes to ventricular dysfunction by electrically uncoupling viable cardiomyocytes in the infarct region. Injection of a conductive biomaterial polymer that restores impulse propagation could synchronize contraction and restore ventricular...

Electrically conductive composite materials can be used for a wide range of applications because they combine the advantages of a specific polymeric material (e.g., thermal and mechanical properties) with the electrical properties of conductive filler particles. However, the overall electrical behaviour of these composite materials is usually much below the potential of the conductive fillers, ...

Synthesis and crystallization of polyethylene with precisely positioned thiophene groups were used to produce polymer crystals a conductive surface.

Compared with traditional conductive fillers, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have unique advantages, i.e., excellent mechanical properties, high electrical conductivity and thermal stability. Nanocomposites as piezoresistive films provide an interesting approach for the realization of large area strain sensors with high sensitivity and low manufacturing costs. A polymer-based nanocomposite with carbon...

Several generations of ionic polymer metal composite (IPMC) actuators have been developed since 1992. It has been discovered that the composite electrodes which are composed of electronic and ionic conductors, have great impact on performance of ionic polymer actuators by affecting strain level, efficiency and speed. One of important factors in composite electrodes is the shape and morphology o...

Electrically conductive polymer composites filled with carbon black can exhibit the mechanical behavior of a polymer and metallic electrical conductivity. Unfortunately, excessive amounts of carbon black can produce brittle films and too little carbon black can result in low conductivity. Composite conductivity can be dramatically improved by using latex as the matrix starting material. Latex p...

This chapter covers the potentially important conductive polymers and their benefits with effective relevance in number of growing technologies in telecommunication, biomolecular electronics, display devices, electrochemical storage systems, and many more. The most widely investigated polymers in practical applications are polythiophene (PTh), polypyrrole (PPy), and polyaniline (PANI). These po...

Among various materials, polymers are widely used in microelectronics as different product constituents, such as encapsulants, conductive or non-conductive adhesives, underfills, molding compounds, insulators, dielectrics, and coatings. The behavior of these polymer constituents determines the performance, such as functionality and reliability, of the final products. Therefore, the successful d...

We demonstrate a novel patterning technique of conductive polymers produced by vapor phase polymerization. The method involves exposing an oxidant film to UV light which changes the local chemical environment of the oxidant and subsequently the polymerization kinetics. This procedure is used to control the conductivity in the conjugated polymer poly(3,4ethylenedioxythiophene):tosylate (PEDOT:To...