Dr. Alan MacDiarmid was the chemist responsible in 1977 for the initial synthesis and chemical and electrochemical doping of polyacetylene, (CH)_x, the prototype conducting polymer, and the "rediscovery" of polyaniline, now probably the foremost industrial conducting polymer.

In 1973, he began research on (SN)_x, an unusual polymeric material with metallic conductivity. His interest in organic conducting polymers began in 1975 when he was introduced to a new form of polyacetylene by Dr. Hideki Shirakawa at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. The ensuing collaboration between Drs. MacDiarmid, Shirakawa and Alan Heeger (then at the Department of Physics at the University of Pennsylvania) led to the historic discovery of metallic conductivity in an organic polymer thus introducing and establishing the field of conducting polymers (electronic polymers). In 2000 these three collaborators received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for this pioneering research.

This initial discovery and ensuing studies permitted Professor MacDiarmid, in collaboration with Dr. Shirakawa, to attempt the first chemical doping of (CH)_x and to collaborate on detailed physics studies with Heeger. That an organic polymer could be readily doped to the metallic regime introduced a phenomenon, completely new and unexpected to both the chemistry and physics communities. This unleashed a flood-gate of research world-wide in chemistry and physics concerning interrelationships between the chemistry, structure and electronic properties of semiconducting and metallic organic polymers which has continued to expand unabatedly to this day. Technological opportunities for application of these materials in such diverse areas as rechargeable batteries, electromagnetic interference shielding, anti-static dissipation, stealth applications, corrosion inhibition, flexible "plastic" transistors and electrodes, electroluminescent polymer displays continue to be actively pursued.

Dr. MacDiarmid’s earlier investigations at Penn involved the synthesis and study of silicon hydrides and organosilicon compounds. During the past 25 years he has been involved exclusively with conducting polymers, particularly the synthesis, chemistry, doping electrochemistry, conductivity, magnetic and optical properties and processing of polyacetylene and polyaniline. His current scientific interests are centered around the technologically important conducting polymers, polyaniline, and poly(ethylenedioxy thiophene) and their use in conducting polymer nanofibers (diameter <100 nm) and inexpensive, disposable plastic and paper electronic circuits.

Professor MacDiarmid's most recent research has created electronic organic fibers with a diameter of less than one hundred nanometers. A nanomaterial is a material consisting of a substance or structure which has at least one dimension less than one hundred nm (the diameter of a human hair is approximately fifty thousand nm). His objective is to combine the fields of electronic organic polymers and electronic nanofibers to develop a new field of "nanoelectronics".

The University of Texas at Dallas' new NanoTech Institute recently announced that Dr. MacDiarmid would be joining the institute as a scholar in residence and as chairman of its advisory board. He will split his time between the new institute and the University of Pennsylvania. He is also actively involved in the establishment of a new institute (The Jilin MacDiarmid Institute) of organic nanomaterials at Jilin University, Changchun, China.

Professor Alan MacDiarmid was born in New Zealand 74 years ago and after obtaining his higher education at the University of New Zealand, University of Wisconsin and Cambridge University he joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania in 1955, where he is currently Blanchard Professor of Chemistry. He is author/co-author of over 600 research papers and approximately 25 patents. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees both nationally and internationally.