This critical review is devoted to semiconducting and high spin polymers which are of great scientific interest in view of further development of the organic electronics and the emerging organic spintronic fields. Diversified synthetic strategies are discussed in detail leading to high molecular mass compounds showing appropriate redox (ionization potential (IP), electron affinity (EA)), electronic (charge carrier mobility, conductivity), optoelectronic (electroluminescence, photoconductivity) and magnetic (magnetization, ferromagnetic spin interactions) properties and used as active components of devices such as n- and p-channel field effect transistors, ambipolar light emitting transistors, light emitting diodes, photovoltaic cells, photodiodes, magnetic photoswitches, etc. Solution processing procedures developed with the goal of depositing highly ordered and oriented films of these polymers are also described. This is completed by the description of principal methods that are used for characterizing these macromolecular compounds both in solution and in the solid state. These involve various spectroscopic methods (UV-vis-NIR, UPS, pulse EPR), electrochemistry and spectroelectrochemistry, magnetic measurements (SQUID), and structural and morphological investigations (X-ray diffraction, STM, AFM). Finally, four classes of polymers are discussed in detail with special emphasis on the results obtained in the past three years: (i) high IP, (ii) high |EA|, (iii) low band gap and (iv) high spin ones.

Ternary and quaternary chalcopyrite-type nanocrystals of M^IM^IIIE₂ and M^IM^IIIZnE₂ type (M^I = Ag, Cu; M^III = In, Fe; E = S, Se) and their core/shell structures have attracted a huge interest in the past decade because they combine size- and composition-tunable optical and electronic properties without relying on toxic elements such as Cd and Pb. These materials had been primarily studied as light harvesters in solar cell applications. However, in the form of colloidal nanocrystals, they exhibit remarkable photoluminescence properties in the visible and near infrared range. At the same time, the underlying emission mechanisms are distinctly different from those occurring in binary semiconductor quantum dots. Several models have been developed to explain the origin of the observed phenomena, in particular the line width broadening, large Stokes shifts and long photoluminescence lifetimes. This review first focusses on the current understanding of the optical properties of the title compounds. Next, an overview of the main synthesis methods is given, both in organic solvents and in the aqueous phase. In the second part, the surface chemistry and ligand exchange procedures are discussed. Finally, organic/inorganic hybrids of chalcopyrite nanocrystals with electroactive molecules are presented as well as their use in photovoltaics.

An essential survey of semiconductor nanocrystal–polymer hybrid nanomaterials and their application in molecular imprinting is presented.