Self-doping and self-acid-doping of conjugated polymer bioelectronics : the case for accuracy in nomenclature

Conjugated polymers are enabling the development of flexible bioelectronics, largely driven by their organic nature which facilitates modification and tuning to suit a variety of applications. As organic semiconductors, conjugated polymers require a dopant to exhibit electrical conductivity, which in physiological conditions can result in dopant loss and thereby deterioration in electronic properties. To overcome this challenge, “self-doped” and self-acid-doped conjugated polymers having ionized pendant groups covalently bound to their backbone are being developed. The ionized group in a “self-doped” polymer behaves as the counterion that maintains electroneutrality, while an external dopant is required to induce charge transfer. The ionized group in a self-acid-doped polymer induces charge transfer and behaves as the counterion balancing the charges. Despite their doping processes being different, the two terms, self-doped and self-acid-doped, are often used interchangeably in the literature. Here, the differences are highlighted in the doping mechanisms of self-doped and self-acid-doped polymers, and it is proposed that the term “self-doped” should be replaced by “self-compensated,” while reserving the term self-acid-doped for polymers that are intrinsically doped without the need of an external dopant. This is followed by a summary of examples of self-acid-doping in bioelectronics, highlighting their stability in the conductive state under physiological conditions.