Polymers that contain ligated metals in their side chain: Building a foundation for functional materials in opto-electronic applications with an emphasis on lanthanide ions

Organic polymers that contain ligated metals offer a variety of unique properties which include luminescence, electro- and photochemistry, catalysis, charge, magnetism, and thermochromism. These organic-inorganic hybrid materials have the potential to offer novel active matrixes for advanced devices. Continued progress in synthetic chemistry and molecular characterization will enable such advanced materials. Here the focus is restricted to side-chain metal complexes with emissive properties that highlight the use of lanthanide ions as opposed to the often-studied transition metal complexes.