INTRODUCTION p-Conjugated polymers have gathered a great deal of attention in the past decades because of their potential application in many areas such as chemistry, medical science, biology, and optoelectronic devices. For instance, they are applied in monitoring harmful/dangerous chemicals, 1–6 recognition of the disfigurement in DNA and RNA, 7–12 detection of bacteria and virus, 13–17 as well as in polymeric light-emitting diodes (PLEDs ...