Polymer Chemistry is the branch of chemistry which deals with large molecules made up of repeating units referred to as monomers. The scope of Polymer Chemistry extends from oligomers with only a few repeating units to very long chain polymers with thousands or millions of repeating units. Polymer Chemistry includes branches which mimic the divisions of the field of chemistry as a whole, with synthetic (preparation methods) and physical (property determination), biological (proteins, polysaccharides, and polynucleic acids), and analytical (qualitative and quantitative analysis) chemistry. Pre-existing polymers can also be modified by chemical means - including grafting or functionalization reactions. Polymerization and modification reactions can be employed to produce designer polymers as new materials with practically any desired properties

Materials science and engineering, involves the discovery and design of new materials, with an emphasis on solids and scientific study of the properties and applications of materials of construction or manufacture (such as ceramics, metals, polymers, and composites). Materials science is also an important part of forensic engineering and failure analysis. In a broad sense, materials science involves studying the synthesis, processing, structure, properties and performance of materials. Properties of interest can be mechanical, electrical, magnetic, optical and quantum mechanical. The outcome of such a study can directly impact the society in which we live and work, by benefiting to industries involved in electronics, communications, medicine, transportation, manufacturing, recreation, energy and environment

Polymeric nanoparticles are predominantly prepared by wet synthetic routes. Several industrial processes will be described. Emphasis will be placed on the type of polymers and morphology structures that can be synthesized using each process. Controlled radical polymerization will be explored for their ability to provide structural control of polymer chains.

The extraordinarily large surface area on the nanoparticles presents diverse opportunities to place functional groups on the surface. Particles can be created that can expand/contract with changes in pH, or interact with anti-bodies in special ways to provide rapid ex-vivo medical diagnostic tests. Important extensions have been made in combining inorganic materials with polymers and in combining different classes of polymers together in nanoparticle form. Advanced analytical techniques allow us to measure structure at ever-decreasing length scales. Computer simulations of the events occurring during particle formation have also benefited us in developing control strategies to produce structured particles.

Synthetic polymers are those which are human-made macromolecule that is made of thousands of repeating units. Sometimes these polymers are straight-chained and branched. Polymers are those which consists of repeated structural units known as monomers. Polyethylene is considered to be as one of the simplest polymer, it has ethene or ethylene as the monomer unit whereas the linear polymer is known as the high density polyethylene-HDPE, many of the polymeric materials have chain-like structures which resemble polyethylene.

From the utility point of view Synthetic Polymers can be classified into four main categories: thermoplastics, thermosets, elastomers and synthetic fibers.

Noncovalent interactions provide a flexible means of engineering new chemical entities with tailored properties. Specific interactions between functionalized small molecules and polymer chains bearing complementary binding sites can be used to engineer supramolecular complexes which display mesomorph polymer structure. This has been exploited to develop a range of functional materials including photonic band gap polymers, ionic conductors and donor-acceptor semiconductors polymers. Additionally, the deliberate association of polymers with surfactants in engineered, synthetic materials is increasingly motivated by the possibility of combining the stimuli-responsive self-assembly and solubilizing properties of surfactants with the intrinsic solution properties of polymers, such as rheology medication and facile coating of interfaces.

Functional polymers are macromolecules to which chemically bound functional groups are attached which can be utilised as reagents, catalysts, protecting groups, etc. The polymer support can be either a linear species which is soluble or a cross-linked species which is insoluble. For a polymer to be used as a support, it should have significant mechanical stability under the reaction conditions. Such properties of the support have greater importance for the functionalization reaction and for the applications of the functional polymers.

The polymer properties can be modified either by chemical reactions on pendant groups or by changing the physical Nature of the polymers, such as their physical form, porosity and solvation behaviour. Such properties have a great importance for the functionalization reactions for the eventual applications of the reactive polymers.

Bio catalytic pathways to Polymeric Materials are an emerging research area with not only enormous scientific and technological promise, but also a tremendous impact on environmental issues. Whole cell biocatalysts have been exploited for thousands of years. Historically biotechnology was manifested in skills such as the manufacture of wines, beer, cheese etc., where the techniques were well worked out and reproducible, while the biochemical mechanism was not well-understood. While the chemical, economic and social advantages of bio catalysis over traditional chemical approaches were recognized a long time ago, their application in industrial production processes have been largely neglected until recent break-through in modern biotechnology (such as robust protein expression systems, directed evolution etc).

Advanced polymeric Biomaterials continue to serve as a cornerstone of new medical technologies and therapies. The vast majority of these materials, both natural and synthetic, interact with biological matter without direct electronic communication. However, biological systems have evolved to synthesize and employ naturally-derived materials for the generation and modulation of electrical potentials, voltage gradients, and ion flows. Bioelectric phenomena can be interpreted as potent signalling cues for intra- and inter-cellular communication. These cues can serve as a gateway to link synthetic devices with biological systems. This progress report will provide an update on advances in the application of electronically active Biomaterials for use in organic electronics and bio-interfaces. Specific focus will be granted to the use of natural and synthetic biological materials as integral components in technologies such as thin film electronics, in vitro cell culture models, and implantable medical devices. Future perspectives and emerging challenges will also be highlighted.

Recent progress in biomaterials-based electronics with an emphasis on the following topics:

• Unique optoelectronic properties of biologically-derived materials
• Novel soft matter for interfacing synthetic devices with cells in vitro.
• Electronically active biomaterials for implantable medical devices.

Proteins are linear polymers built of monomer units called amino acids. The construction of a vast array of macromolecules or polymer structure from a limited number of monomer building blocks is a recurring theme in biochemistry. The function of a protein is directly dependent on its three dimensional structure remarkably, proteins spontaneously fold up into three-dimensional structures that are determined by the sequence of amino acids in the protein polymer. Thus, proteins are the embodiment of the transition from the one-dimensional world of sequences to the three-dimensional world of molecules capable of diverse activities.

Proteins contain a wide range of functional groups. These functional groups include alcohols, thiols, thioethers, carboxylic acids, carboxamides, and a variety of basic groups. When combined in various sequences, this array of functional groups accounts for the broad spectrum of protein function. For instance, the chemical reactivity associated with these groups is essential to the function of enzymes, the proteins which catalyse specific chemical reactions in biological systems

Polymer therapeutics encompasses polymer–protein conjugates, drug–polymer conjugates, and supramolecular drug-delivery systems. Numerous polymer–protein conjugates with improved stability and pharmacokinetic properties have been developed, for example, by anchoring enzymes or biologically relevant proteins to polyethylene glycol components (PEGylation). Several polymer–protein conjugates have received market approval, for example the PEGylated form of adenosine deaminase. Coupling low-molecular-weight anticancer drugs to high-molecular-weight polymers through a cleavable linker is an effective method for improving the therapeutic index of clinically established agents, and the first candidates have been evaluated in clinical trials, including, N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide conjugates of doxorubicin, camptothecin, paclitaxel, and platinum (II) complexes. Another class of polymer therapeutics are drug-delivery systems based on well-defined multivalent and dendritic polymers. These include polyanionic polymers for the inhibition of virus attachment, polycationic complexes with DNA or RNA (polyplexes), and dendritic core–shell architectures for the encapsulation of drugs.

The Organic Evolution high polymers ranging from natural cellulose to vinyls, acrylates, polyamides and polyesters, contain essential elements for nutrition of plants and animals. The enzyme systems present in the organisms can attack these organic materials by virtue of specificity or adaptation, depending upon the chemical constitution and Polymer Structure. It was previously noted that certain of these polymers were liable to microbial attack, and this posed a problem in their general use in electrical insulation and as protective coatings. The evaluation of the relative resistance of polymers to fungi and bacteria has been a subject of investigation for a long time but the chemical and mechanistic approach has hardly been undertaken.

The controlled combustion of polymers produces heat energy. The heat energy produced by the burning plastic municipal waste not only can be converted to electrical energy but also helps burn the wet trash that is present. Paper also produces heat when burned, but not as much as do plastics. On the other hand, glass, aluminium and other metals do not release any energy when burned. The disposal of polymer solid waste by means other than landfilling is necessary.

Material physics mainly describes the physical properties of materials whereas Materials chemistry implicates the use of chemistry for the design and synthesis of materials with interesting or potentially useful physical characteristics, such as magnetic, optical, structural or catalytic properties. current fields which materials physicists work in include magnetic materials, electronic, optical, and novel materials and structures, quantum phenomena in materials, non-equilibrium physics, and soft condensed matter physics. Material chemistry and physics also include the characterization, processing, performance, properties and molecular-level understanding of the substances. 

The traditional examples of materials are metals alloys, polymers, Composite material semiconductors, ceramics and glasses.

Polymer Optical Fiber or Plastic Optical Fiber (POF) is an optical fiber that is made out of polymer, similar to that of glass optical fiber, POF also transmits light (for illumination or data), so Polymer Optical Fiber has been called the "consumer" optical fiber because the fiber and associated optical links, connectors, and installation are all inexpensive. The perfluorinated polymer fibers are commonly used for much higher-speed applications such as data center wiring and building LAN wiring. Polymer optical fibers (POF) can be used for remote sensing and multiplexing due to their low-cost and high resistance, The refractive index of a polymer is based on several factors which include polarizability, chain flexibility, molecular geometry and the polymer backbone orientation

The term “Bioplastic” represents a plastic substance that is based (wholly or in part) on organic biomass rather than petroleum, these are plastics derived from renewable biomass sources, such as vegetable fats and oils, corn starch, or microbiota. Bioplastics are a diverse family of materials with differing properties. Today, there is a bioplastic alternative for almost every conventional plastic material and used in a variety of consumer products, such as food containers, grocery bags, biodegradable utensils, and food packaging.

Bioplastics can also be used for engineering grade applications, such as electrical and electronic housings and enclosures.