New strategy for developing human-integrated electronics

Polymer semiconductors - materials that have been made soft and stretchy but still able to conduct electricity - hold promise for future electronics that can be integrated within the body, including disease detectors and health monitors. Yet until now, scientists and engineers have been unable to give these polymers certain advanced features, like the ability to sense biochemicals, without disrupting their functionality altogether. Researchers at the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (PME) have developed a new strategy to overcome that limitation. Called "click-to-polymer" or CLIP, this approach uses a chemical reaction to attach new functional units onto polymer semiconductors. Using the new technique, researchers developed a polymer glucose monitoring device, demonstrating the possible applications of CLIP in human-integrated electronics. The results were published August 4 in the journal Matter . "Semiconducting polymers are one of the most promising materials systems for wearable and implantable electronics," said Asst.