Near-Amorphous Conjugated Polymers: An Emerging Class of Semiconductors for Flexible Electronics

The emergence of flexible electronics with broad application prospects has put forward new requirements for organic semiconductors, i.e., not only the electrical properties but also the mechanical properties. Among the strategies to achieve synergy between mechanical and electrical properties, near-amorphous polymers are competitive candidates due to their advantages of intrinsic flexibility, high mobility, and high reproducibility. Near-amorphous polymers with excellent performance are continuing to attract attention, and recently, some significant progress has been achieved in this field. In this perspective, we summarize these excellent advances on near-amorphous polymers from the point of view of their molecular design principles, their resulting charge transport and mechanical properties, and their potential applications in flexible electronic devices. Finally, we give a brief discussion on the challenges and opportunities of near-amorphous materials in flexible electronics from the perspectives of semiconductor layer materials themselves, devices, and multifunctional integration.