Application of conductive polymer hydrogels in flexible electronics

Abstract Flexible electronic devices to obtain accurate and efficient information interactions between humans and machines have gained increasing attention in recent years. A series of soft materials for flexible electronics have been developed to improve device performance in terms of electrical and mechanical properties. Among them, conductive polymer‐based hydrogels (CPHs), which combine the tunable electronic properties of conductive polymers and the soft mechanical properties of hydrogels, are promising candidates for next‐generation wearable electronic devices. This review summarized the material design and preparation of CPHs, and presented the properties of CPHs, including tunable conductivity, outstanding mechanical performance, biocompatibility, self‐healing capability, resistance to freezing, and solution processability. In particular, their emerging applications in flexible electronics devices including flexible supercapacitors, flexible sensors, and biomedical electronics are highlighted. Furthermore, perspectives on existing challenges and opportunities in this field are discussed.