Development of new platforms to manufacture polymeric electrochemical transistors and its applications

Abstract

The main goal of this project is to promote the development of the interface between organic electronics and biology, through the understanding of physics, science and engineering of materials and the development of devices for specific applications. The field known as Organic Bioelectronics has gained attention, mainly due to its promising application in devices connected to the sensing of substances (e.g, viruses and bacteria), to stimulation and detection of neuronal synapses and to intelligent tissue engineering, implantation and modern prostheses. However, several fundamental aspects in the area, such as understanding the mechanisms of device operation, the adhesion of biomaterials on the surface of polymeric materials, and/or the correlations between morphological changes at the interface of the polymer/biological material with electrical signals are not completely understood. On the top of that, applications in biological systems require polymeric materials that operate in aqueous environment, which significantly reduces the library of conjugated polymers available for the development of conventional bioelectronics. Thus, this research project intends to perform a fundamental study of the mechanisms of operation of Organic Electrochemical Transistors (OECTs). Based on the acquired knowledge, we intend to propose general requirements to manufacture of such transistors that encompass all available conjugated polymers (and not only those that operate in aqueous systems). Finally, we will use the basic knowledge of the proposed architecture and develop applications of the platforms in electrochemical polymer battery systems.