Metal/metalloid polymers

Polyorganometallic I —M-C— (M = metal / metalloid Metal / metalloid Antimony polymers... 

The tin, iron, and osmium examples discussed above allow one to imagine all sorts of possibilities for metal- and metalloid-containing polymers with biomedical applications. In the next section a series of selected biomedical applications of metal-bound polymers is reviewed. This is followed by a short review of some representative small molecules containing metals which have biomedical uses. 

In this book series, macromolecules containing metal and metal-like elements are defined as large structures where the metal and metalloid atoms are (largely) covalently bonded into the macromolecular network within or pendant to the polymer backbone. 

Silicon does not occur free in nature, but is found in most rocks, sand, and clay. Silicon is electropositive, so it acts like a metalloid or semiconductor. In some ways silicon resembles metals as well as nonmetals. In some special compounds called polymers, silicon will act in conjunction with oxygen. In these special cases it is acting like a nonmetal. 

The topic of metal- and metalloid-containing polymers can be divided by many means. Here, the topic will be divided according to the type of reaction employed to incorporate the inorganic atom into the polymer chain. While many other types of reactions have been employed to produce metal- and metalloid-containing polymers including redox, coupling,... 

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