Self-assembly of rod-coil block copolymers from weakly to moderately segregated regimes.

The European Physical Journal. E, Soft Matter
N SaryR Mezzenga

Abstract

We report on the self-assembly behaviour of two homologue series of rod-coil block copolymers in which, the rod, a pi -conjugated polymer, is maintained fixed in size and chemical structure, while the coil is allowed to vary both in molecular weight and chemical nature. This allows maintaining constant the liquid crystalline interactions, expressed by Maier-Saupe interactions, omega , while varying the tendency towards microphase separation, expressed by the product between the Flory-Huggins parameter and the total polymerization degree, chi N . Therefore, the systems presented here allow testing directly some of the theoretical predictions for the self-assembly of rod-coil block copolymers in a weakly segregated regime. The two rod-coil block copolymer systems investigated were poly(DEH-p-phenylenevinylene-b-styrene), whose self-assembly takes place in the very weakly segregated regime, and poly(DEH-p-phenylenevinylene-b-4vinylpyridine), for which the self-assembly behaviour occurs under increased tendency towards microphase separation, hereby referred to as moderately segregated regime. Experimental results for both systems are compared with predictions based on Landau expansion theories.

References

Jul 23, 2004·The Journal of Chemical Physics·Victor Pryamitsyn, Venkat Ganesan
Jan 1, 1990·Annual Review of Physical Chemistry·F S Bates, G H Fredrickson

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Citations

Mar 11, 2010·Advanced Materials·Nicolas SaryRaffaele Mezzenga
Jan 6, 2010·Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids·Varun VohraChiara Botta
Jul 14, 2010·Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids·Yi Wang, Graciela W Padua
Mar 15, 2011·Langmuir : the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids·Karim AissouRedouane Borsali

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