This handy guide to metallo-supramolecular polymers (MSPs) summarizes the polymer design, synthesis, structural analysis, optical and electrochemical properties, and device applications in one volume. It focuses especially on the recent development of MSPs shown in publications since 2016 so that readers become familiar with up-to-date trends in this field of research. The book is particularly suitable for doctoral and master’s degree students in chemistry, researchers in universities and industries, and others who are interested in MSPs. 

Unlike conventional organic polymers, MSPs composed of metal salts and multitopic organic ligands are degradable to monomers under acidic conditions. This new category of polymers shows unique optical and electrochemical properties including electrochromic (EC) properties. For the structures of MSPs, the book presents one-, two-, and three-dimensional control of the polymer structure, sequence control of two- and three-metal species in the polymer, and the combination of the polymer dimension and the metal sequence. Regarding optical and electrochemical properties, EC properties, ionic conductivities, and emissive properties are presented. The book also describes the design and fabrication of EC devices (ECDs) with details of the use of MSPs for smart window applications. This book is the second of two volumes, its predecessor Metallo-Supramolecular Polymers, was published in 2019. The combination of the two volumes amply provides readers with a deeper understanding of MSP chemistry. 

Masayoshi Higuchi (National Institute for Materials Science, and The University of Osaka)

Masayoshi Higuchi received his Ph.D. from Osaka University in 1998. His research interests include metallo-supramolecular polymers, their optical and electrochemical properties, and electronic devices using the polymers. He is currently a group leader at the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS), Japan and a Guest Professor of The University of Osaka. He has published more than 190 articles in international journals. He won the German Innovation Award, the Gottfried Wagener Prize, at the German Research and Innovative Forum Tokyo in 2011 for his “Development of new electrochromic materials and their application to display devices”.

Aiwei Zhao (National Institute for Materials Science, and The University of Osaka)

Aiwei Zhao is currently a doctoral course student in the University of Osaka-NIMS Joint Graduate School Program at the Graduate School of Information Science and Technology, The University of Osaka and a NIMS Junior Researcher in NIMS. Her research interests include electrochromic supramolecular materials and the application of machine learning to the study of their properties.