In which year MacDiarmid, Heeger and Shirakawa were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the discovery of conducting polymers?

The correct answer is 2000.

Key Points

• Alan Heeger, Alan MacDiarmid, and Hideki Shirakawa were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in the year 2000 for their discovery and development of conductive polymers.
• Their pioneering work demonstrated that plastics can be made to conduct electricity, a significant breakthrough in material science.
• The discovery of conductive polymers has led to the development of various practical applications, including in electronics and photonics.
• The trio's groundbreaking research fundamentally changed the understanding of polymers and opened new avenues in the field of material science.

Additional Information

• Conductive Polymers:
  • Conductive polymers are organic polymers that conduct electricity, a property typically associated with metals.
  • These materials combine the electrical properties of metals with the advantageous mechanical properties of polymers.
  • Applications include flexible electronics, organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), and solar cells.
• Polythiophene:
  • Polythiophene is one of the most studied conductive polymers.
  • It is used in various applications such as antistatic coatings and organic electronics.
• Electrochemical Doping:
  • Electrochemical doping is a process used to increase the conductivity of polymers.
  • This involves the incorporation of charge carriers into the polymer chain.
• Organic Electronics:
  • Organic electronics involve the use of conductive polymers to create electronic devices.
  • These devices are typically more flexible and less expensive to manufacture than their inorganic counterparts.