Polydopamine films: Electrochemical growth and sensing applications

Polydopamine is one of the most promising biomimetic polymers for environmental, biomedical and energy applications. This review presents the current state of the art in the electrochemistry of polydopamine nanomaterials and its applications in the electrochemical analysis and sensing field. First, the mechanism of electrochemical oxidation of dopamine is given concerning the influence of the electrodeposition method and processing conditions, e.g. the pH value is presented, as well as the particularities of polydopamine in electro impedance spectroscopy studies. The electrochemical formation of the polydopamine free-standing thin films is also discussed. Moreover, literature examples of polydopamine for construction or functionalization of the electrochemical sensors for drug traces, disease markers and pesticide contaminants detecting, potentiometric sensing, and wearable strain sensors construction are presented. Finally, we outline the future developments and perspectives of the field.