INS12-1635
Eluciating Electronic and Ionic transport in Organic semiconducting Polymers
Topic
S12. Women in Renewable Energy and Sustainability (WiRES) 2026
When and Where
Sep 30, 2026
11:35 - 12:00
Room 204
Session Chairs
Eunkyoung KIM
Presenter(s)
Hyunjung Lee (Kookmin Univ.)
Co-Author(s)
Abstract
Organic semiconducting polymers hold immense promise for flexible, wearable thermoelectric (TE) and bioelectronic applications; however, fine-tuning their coupled electronic and ionic charge transport dynamics remains a core challenge. Here, we demonstrate strategic design frameworks to optimize both electronic and ionic transport mechanisms in functional polymeric systems.To govern electronic charge transport, organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) were utilized for in situ electrochemical doping, systematically widening the reachable doping range. By synthesizing four p-type semicrystalline polymers with tailored side chains, we investigated how side-chain engineering influences the evolution of crystalline morphology and the local density of states (DOS) during doping, direct linking these microstructural changes to enhanced TE efficiency.To overcome the ambient instability of conventional ionic hydrogels—which typically require high humidity for ion diffusion and self-healing—we developed p-type and n-type polymeric ionic gels (PIGs) featuring tunable ionic side-chain densities. Operating reliably in dry environments without encapsulation, these PIGs exhibit exceptional optical transparency, thermal tolerance up to 125 °C, high intrinsic stretchability, and autonomous self-healing. Together, these insights into semicrystalline polymers and robust PIGs offer clear design principles for high-performance, durable, and highly adaptive materials in next-generation organic thermoelectric and wearable electronic technologies.
