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Poly(benzimidazobenzophenanthroline) demonstrates a unique behavior of cation-dependent deswelling at high levels of electrochemical doping, different from typical organic mixed ionic–electronic conductors that usually swell in such conditions. Through operando measurements and modeling, it has been revealed that the expulsion of water and charge localization are driven by protic cations interacting strongly with the polymer backbone, unveiling a distinctive deswelling mechanism.
The findings are summarized in a study by van der Pol, T. P. A. et al., titled “Cation–polymer interactions drive water expulsion and deswelling in n-type ladder organic mixed conductors,” published in Nat. Mater. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41563-025-02478-2 (2026).