A Decade of Iontronic Delivery DevicesShow others and affiliations
2018 (English)In: Advanced Materials Technologies, E-ISSN 2365-709X, Vol. 3, no 5, article id 1700360Article, review/survey (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
In contrast to electronic systems, biology rarely uses electrons as the signal to regulate functions, but rather ions and molecules of varying size. Due to the unique combination of both electronic and ionic/molecular conductivity in conjugated polymers and polyelectrolytes, these materials have emerged as an excellent tool for translating signals between these two realms, hence the field of organic bioelectronics. Since organic bioelectronics relies on the electron-mediated transport and compensation of ions (or the ion-mediated transport and compensation of electrons), a great deal of effort has been devoted to the development of so-called "iontronic" components to effect precise substance delivery/transport, that is, components where ions are the dominant charge carrier and where ionic-electronic coupling defines device functionality. This effort has resulted in a range of technologies including ionic resistors, diodes, transistors, and basic logic circuits for the precisely controlled transport and delivery of biologically active chemicals. This Research News article presents a brief overview of some of these "ion pumping" technologies, how they have evolved over the last decade, and a discussion of applications in vitro, in vivo, and in plantae.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
2018. Vol. 3, no 5, article id 1700360
Keywords [en]
bioelectronics; controlled release; ion transport; iontronics; organic electronics; thin films
National Category
Condensed Matter Physics
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-148252DOI: 10.1002/admt.201700360ISI: 000431960700007OAI: oai:DiVA.org:liu-148252DiVA, id: diva2:1213386
Note
Funding Agencies|Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research; Swedish Research Council, Vinnova; Onnesjo Foundation; Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation [2012.0302]
2018-06-042018-06-042024-01-10