From giant vesicles to filaments and wires: Templates for conducting polymers

Conducting polypyrrole-coated structures with lengths of several hundreds of micrometers and diameters varying from several micrometers to less then 150 nm have been formed using biomembrane templates (see Figure). The nanotubes can be attached between Au electrode surfaces, and are stable for at least a month. Possible applications exist in the fabrication of electronic devices, inter-element wiring, and biosensors.