CHAPTER 16: Conjugated Polyelectrolytes

Conjugated polyelectrolytes (CPEs) combine the interesting optical/optoelectronic properties of the π-conjugated backbone with water solubility. CPEs exhibit fascinating and unique properties such as processability from green solvents, exciton and charge transport influenced by the main chain, and variable bandgap light absorption and fluorescence controlled by the chromophores in the backbone. Applications of CPEs range from optoelectronic devices to optical chemo- and biosensors. This chapter is mainly concerned with the synthetic strategies employed for making different types of CPEs along with the details on the polymerization techniques and experimental conditions.