Catherine Beaumont, Laboratoire du Pr Mario Leclerc, IPhone 11

Who would have thought that plastics could minimize the environmental impact caused by human overconsumption? This polymeric starry night is actually a semi-conducting plastic, developed to replace inorganic materials that are difficult to recycle, and which contribute to the accumulation of polluting electronic waste. This new generation of conjugated polymers is water soluble and can be degraded. Following the synthesis, the polymer undergoes a series of washes and is recovered by filtration as a powder. The arrangement of the polymer chains is what leads to that metallic luster.

Research director : Mario Leclerc