Direct View of Structural Regimes of End-Grafted Polymer Monolayers: A Scanning Force Microscopy Study

Comparative Study on Macro-Tribological Properties of PLL-g-PEG and PSPMA Polymer Brushes

An ultra-low friction and high load capacity could be obtained on the surfaces grafted by a polymer brush even at relatively slow friction speeds in aqueous lubrication environments, which has attracted widespread attention to study the lubrication mechanism of polymer brushes; however, it has yet to be fully understood. The macroscopic tribological performance of two different polymer brushes, which were prepared by the method of “grafting to” and “grafting from” and named as PLL-g-PEG and PSPMA, respectively, were investigated. The friction results demonstrated that PLL-g-PEG obtained a lower friction coefficient than polymer brush PSPMA, which was ascribed to its unique “self-healing” behavior. The lubrication film was in situ observed and the film thickness induced by the polymer brush was measured using a laboratory set for film thickness measurement apparatus based on interference technology. It was found that PSPMA exhibited excellent lubrication performance not found in PLL-g-PEG, and two film-forming mechanisms highly dependent on velocity were revealed, which may be important to interpret the lubrication mechanism of polymer brushes in aqueous lubricants.

Adhesion Force Analysis of Dynamic Polymer Brushes

Spontaneous surface segregation of amphiphilic diblock copolymers at the water interface from the elastomeric portion was utilized for the fabrication of hydrophilic brushes, named as "dynamic polymer brush". Observation of the dynamic polymer brushes appears only when immersed in water and demands advanced experimental techniques for embedded interfaces such as neutron reflectivity. Measurement of the hydrophobic interaction at the polymer/water interface is not only an alternative method to monitor the brush but also reveals its unique surface properties. We carried out adhesion force measurements using atomic force microscopy with a hydrophobic probe for measuring the hydrophobic interactions of dynamic polymer brushes in water. Dynamic polymer brushes showed reduced hydrophobic interaction, which becomes more significant at higher graft density. Moreover, a unique transitional response to the applied pressure was observed for the dynamic polymer brush: the adhesion force was almost zero at low applied pressure and increased by further increasing the applied pressure. This phenomenon may indicate reallocation or retraction of the block copolymer chains from the contact area by the applied pressure, which are the unique characteristics of nonbound dynamic polymer brush chains. We also conducted adhesion force imaging and proved that dynamic polymer brushes form uniform layers without any defects, irrespective of brush density, which suggests that the interaction between the dynamic polymer brush chains is that of repulsion.

Optimisation of grafting of low fouling polymers from three-dimensional scaffolds via surface-initiated Cu(0) mediated polymerisation

Well-controlled low fouling polymers brushes were grafted from the surface of biodegradable electrospun fibres for advanced tissue engineering applications.

Homopolymer Nanolithography

Future progress in nanoscience and nanotechnology necessitates further development of versatile, labor-, and cost-efficient surface patterning strategies. A new approach to nanopatterning is reported, which utilizes surface segregation of a smooth layer of an end-grafted homopolymer in a poor solvent. The variation in polymer grafting density yields a range of surface nanostructures, including randomly organized pinned spherical micelles, worm-like structures, networks, and porous films. The capability to use the polymer patterns for site-specific deposition of small molecules, polymers, or nanoparticles is shown. This versatile strategy enables patterning of curved surfaces with direct access to the substrate and no need in changing polymer composition to realize different surface patterns.

Poly(styrene-co-butadiene) random copolymer thin films and nanostructures on a mica surface: morphology and contact angles of nanodroplets

The self-assembly of poly(styrene-co-butadiene) random copolymers on mica surfaces was studied by varying solution concentrations and polymer molecular weights. Toluene solutions of the poly(styrene-co-butadiene) samples were spin coated onto a mica surface and the resulting polymer morphology was investigated by atomic force microscopy. At higher concentrations, thin films formed with varying thicknesses; some dewetting was observed which depended on the molecular weight. Total dewetting did not occur despite the polymer's low glass transition temperature. Instead, partial dewetting was observed suggesting that the polymer was in a metastable equilibrium state. At lower concentrations, spherical cap shaped nanodroplets formed with varying sizes from single polymer chains to aggregates containing millions of chains. As the molecular weight was increased, fewer aggregates were observed on the surface, albeit with larger sizes resulting from increased solution viscosities and more chain entanglements at higher molecular weights. The contact angles of the nanodroplets were shown to be size dependent. A minimum contact angle occurs for droplets with radii of 100-250 nm at each molecular weight. Droplets smaller than 100 nm showed a sharp increase in contact angle; attributed to an increase in the elastic modulus of the droplets, in addition, to a positive line tension value. Droplets larger than 250 nm also showed an increased contact angle due to surface heterogeneities which cannot be avoided for larger droplets. This increase in contact angle plateaus as the droplet size reaches the macroscopic scale.

New strategy to create ultra-thin surface layer of grafted amphiphilic macromolecules

It was found first that macromolecules made of amphiphilic monomer units could form spontaneously an ultra-thin layer on the surface which the macromolecules are grafted to. The width of such layer is about double size of monomer unit consisting of hydrophilic A (repulsive) and hydrophobic (attractive) B beads. The hydrophilic A beads are connected in a polymer chain while hydrophobic B beads are attached to A beads of the backbone as side groups. Three characteristic regimes are distinguished. At low grafting density, the macromolecules form ultra-thin micelles of the shape changing with decrease of distance d between grafting points as following: circular micelles-prolonged micelles-inverse micelles-homogeneous bilayer. Those micelles have approximately constant height and specific top-down A-BB-A structure. At higher grafting density, the micelles start to appear above the single bilayer of amphiphilic macromolecules. The thickness of grafted layer in these cases is different in different regions of grafting surface. Only at rather high density of grafting, the height of macromolecular layer becomes uniform over the whole grafting surface. The study was performed by computer modeling experiments and confirmed in framework of analytical theory.

Self-assembling nano mixed-brushes having co-continuous surface morphology by melt growing single crystals and comparison with solution patterned leopard-skin surface morphology

The behavior of melt-grown mixed-brushes was studied and compared with the behavior of the corresponding solution-grown matrix-dispersed mixed-brushes.

Hybrid molecular brushes with chitosan backbone: facile synthesis and surface grafting

We developed a facile route toward amphiphilic hybrid molecular brushes (HMB) with chitosan backbone and concurrently grafted chains of poly(acrylamide) and polystyrene. The grafting occurs through amino groups of chitosan; no extra modification of chitosan is required. The kinetic and molecular weight characteristics of the primary molecular brush CHI-graft-PAAm are studied. The second step is grafting of PS by emulsion polymerization. The resulting HMB CHI-graft-PAAm-graft-PS form very stable emulsions. We attached the HMB on solid substrates using chitosan backbone by the "grafting to" approach. Thin films of the immobilized HMB of 3-11 nm thickness completely cover the surface. Being amphiphilic by nature, the immobilized HMB reveal the ability to adapt to the medium, which results in shifting of the hydrophobic/hydrophilic balance over a wide range.

Sensing surface PEGylation with microcantilevers

Polymers are often used to modify surface properties to control interfacial processes. Their sensitivity to solvent conditions and ability to undergo conformational transitions makes polymers attractive in tailoring surface properties with specific functionalities leading to applications in diverse areas ranging from tribology to colloidal stability and medicine. A key example is polyethylene glycol (PEG), which is widely used as a protein-resistant coating given its low toxicity and biocompatibility. We report here a microcantilever-based sensor for the in situ characterization of PEG monolayer formation on Au using the "grafting to" approach. Moreover, we demonstrate how microcantilevers can be used to monitor conformational changes in the grafted PEG layer in different solvent conditions. This is supported by atomic force microscope (AFM) images and force-distance curve measurements of the microcantilever chip surface, which show that the grafted PEG undergoes a reversible collapse when switching between good and poor solvent conditions, respectively.

Self-organization of grafted polyelectrolyte layers via the coupling of chemical equilibrium and physical interactions

The competition between chemical equilibrium, for example protonation, and physical interactions determines the molecular organization and functionality of biological and synthetic systems. Charge regulation by displacement of acid-base equilibrium induced by changes in the local environment provides a feedback mechanism that controls the balance between electrostatic, van der Waals, steric interactions and molecular organization. Which strategies do responsive systems follow to globally optimize chemical equilibrium and physical interactions? We address this question by theoretically studying model layers of end-grafted polyacids. These layers spontaneously form self-assembled aggregates, presenting domains of controlled local pH and whose morphologies can be manipulated by the composition of the solution in contact with the film. Charge regulation stabilizes micellar domains over a wide range of pH by reducing the local charge in the aggregate at the cost of chemical free energy and gaining in hydrophobic interactions. This balance determines the boundaries between different aggregate morphologies. We show that a qualitatively new form of organization arises from the coupling between physical interactions and protonation equilibrium. This optimization strategy presents itself with polyelectrolytes coexisting in two different and well-defined protonation states. Our results underline the need of considering the coupling between chemical equilibrium and physical interactions due to their highly nonadditive behavior. The predictions provide guidelines for the creation of responsive polymer layers presenting self-organized patterns with functional properties and they give insights for the understanding of competing interactions in highly inhomogeneous and constrained environments such as those relevant in nanotechnology and those responsible for biological cells function.

Morphological structures formed by grafted polymers in poor solvents

We study a system of grafted polymers in a poor solvent by self-consistent-field methods as well as Monte-Carlo simulation methods. We observe a number of different morphological structures including an inverted solvent micelle or hole in the polymer layer, a lamella-like micelle structure, and fused, spherical micelle structures. These structures can be obtained by either varying the grafting density or chain length. We also develop a scaling theory for the existence of these structures and find reasonable agreement between this theory and our numerical calculations.

Surface morphologies of Langmuir-Blodgett monolayers of PEOnPSn multiarm star copolymers

Star polymers composed of equal numbers of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and polystyrene (PS) arms with variable lengths and a large (up to 38 total) number of arms, PEO(n)PS(n), have been examined for their ability to form domain nanostructures at the air-water and air-solid interfaces. All PEO(n)PS(n) star polymers formed stable Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) monolayers transferable to a solid substrate. A range of nanoscale surface morphologies have been observed, ranging from cylindrical to circular domains to bicontinuous structures as the weight fraction of the PEO block varied from 19% to 88% and n from 8 to 19. For the PS-rich stars and at elevated surface pressure, a two-dimensional supramolecular netlike nanostructure was formed. In contrast, in the PEO-rich star polymer with the highest PEO content, we observed peculiar dendritic superstructures caused by intramolecular segregation of nonspherical core-shell micellar structures. On the basis of Langmuir isotherms and observed monolayer morphologies, three different models of possible surface behavior of the star polymers at the interfaces were proposed.

Nanointerrogation of ultrasonic contrast agent microbubbles using atomic force microscopy

Predicting the acoustic response of an encapsulated microbubble to ultrasound requires an accurate assessment of the mechanical properties of the microbubble shell. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) provides an unprecedented spatial and force resolution of the order of Angstroms and subnanonewtons, respectively. It is introduced here as a means to interrogate microbubbles manufactured for ultrasonic imaging. The advantage of AFM over scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is that the microbubbles need not be subjected to a low temperature or low-pressure environment. The microbubbles were interrogated in a liquid environment, which could potentially be a simulated physiological environment. AFM was used in tapping mode imaging to reveal topographical detail of biSphere microbubbles. Because microbubbles are large objects compared with the overall size of usual AFM tips, a convolution between the AFM tip and the microbubble was typical of the acquired topographies. However, a part of the top half of the bubble was imaged with nanometer resolution, and roughness measurements are reported. Force-distance curves were captured using contact mode AFM. The range of stiffness or effective spring constant of biSphere was found to be between 1 and 6 N m(-1). In conclusion, the AFM is proposed here for the first time as a tool to image the surface of bubbles at the nanometer range in liquid and to perform reproducible measurements on the mechanical properties of individual microbubbles.

Electrochemistry of surface-grafted stimulus-responsive monolayers of poly(ferrocenyldimethylsilane) on gold

Poly(ferrocenyldimethylsilane)s with various degrees of polymerization and featuring a thiol end group were chemically end-grafted onto gold substrates by self-assembly, forming redox-active monolayers. The monolayers were characterized by contact angle measurements, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Layer thickness values were determined by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy and ellipsometry. The electrochemical properties of these films in aqueous NaClO(4) were studied using cyclic voltammetry (CV), differential pulse voltammetry, chronoamperometry, and chronocoulometry. Cyclic voltammograms showed two reversible redox peaks, indicating a stepwise oxidation of the electroactive sites. The first oxidation step showed reversible behavior at low scan rates and quasi-reversible behavior at higher scan rates. Peak currents (i(p)) plotted against the square root of scan rates (v(1/2)) for the first oxidation peak and for the corresponding reduction peak exhibited a linear dependence, indicating that the oxidation process in the first step is controlled by the diffusion of counterions into the polymer film. For the second oxidation peak and the corresponding reduction peak, i(p) varied linearly with v. This redox behavior is characteristic of surface-immobilized electroactive layers. The higher reversibility of the second oxidation and reduction waves in the CV experiments was explained from the solvation of the surface-grafted poly(ferrocenylsilane) (PFS) chains, which depends on the degree of oxidation. Oxidized PFS films are swollen in the aqueous electrolyte solutions, leading to a higher segmental mobility of the polymer chains and a much increased counterion mobility within the film. Kinetic parameters for the redox processes were obtained from chronocoulometry experiments.

Solid phase DNA amplification: a Brownian dynamics study of crowding effects

Solid phase amplification (SPA), a new method to amplify DNA, is characterized by the use of surface-bound primers. This limits the amplification to two-dimensional surfaces and therefore allows the easy parallelization of DNA amplification in a single system. SPA leads to the formation of small but dense DNA brushes, called DNA colonies. For a molecule to successfully duplicate itself, it needs to bend so that its free end can find a matching primer, located on the surface. We used Brownian dynamics simulations (with a united-atom model) to model the basic kinetics of an SPA experiment. The simulations mimic the temperature cycles and the molecule duplication process found in SPA. Our results indicate that the steric interaction between molecules leads to a decreased duplication probability for molecules in the center of a colony and to an outward leaning for the molecules on the perimeter. These effects result in slower amplification (compared to solution PCR) and indicate that steric interaction alone can explain the loss of the exponential growth (characteristic of solution PCR) of the number of molecules in an SPA experiment. Furthermore, the growth of the colony as a function of the number of thermal cycles is found to be similar to the one obtained with a simple Monte Carlo simulation.

Preparation of poly(epsilon-caprolactone) brushes at the surface of conducting substrates

This paper reports on the preparation of polyester brushes at the surface of electrically conducting materials. A two-step strategy has been worked out that consists of the electropolymerization of an acrylate under a cathodic potential, such that the polyacrylate layer is chemisorbed at the surface. In a second step, either preformed poly(epsilon-caprolactone) chains are grafted onto the polyacrylate sublayer or the ring-opening polymerization of epsilon-caprolactone is initiated from it.

Surface behavior of amphiphilic heteroarm star-block copolymers with asymmetric architecture

We study the surface behavior of the asymmetric amphiphilic heteroarm poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)/polystyrene (PS) star polymer on solid substrate. These star polymers differ in both architecture (four- and three-arm molecules, PEO-b-PS(3) and PEO-b-PS(2)) and in the length of PS chains (molecular weight from about 10 000 up to 24 000). We observed that, for a given chemical composition with a predominant content of hydrophobic blocks, the compression behavior of the PS domain structure controls the surface behavior and the final morphology of the monolayers. New features of the surface behavior of star-block copolymers are high stretching of the PS arms from the interface and enhanced stability of the circular PS domain structure, even at high compression. We suggest that for asymmetric star-block copolymers both architecture and chemical composition heavily favor the formation of highly curved interfaces and, thus, more stable circular domain structure with stretched PS arms.

Polymer-stabilized gold nanoparticles with high grafting densities

A series of polymer-coated Au nanoparticles have been prepared using the "grafting-to" approach. Thiol-terminated polystyrene and poly(ethylene oxide) ligands are found to form dense brushes on the faceted gold nanoparticle surfaces. Depending on the polymer, the ligand grafting densities on the gold nanoparticles are 1.2- to 23.5-fold greater than those available via self-assembled monolayer formation of the corresponding two-dimensional gold surfaces.

Y-Shaped Amphiphilic Brushes with Switchable Micellar Surface Structures

We observed novel nanoscale surface structures of segregated pinned micelles and craterlike micelles formed by grafted Y-shaped molecules and their reversible reorganization in selective solvents. The Y-shaped molecules have two incompatible polymer chains (polystyrene and poly(tert-butyl acrylate)) attached to a functional stemlike segment capable of covalent grafting to a functionalized silicon surface. Postgrafting hydrolysis of poly(tert-butyl acrylate) arms imparts amphiphilicity to the brush. We demonstrated that spatial constraints induced by a chemical junction of two relatively short (6-10 nm) dissimilar arms in such Y-shaped molecules lead to the formation of segregated micellar surface nanostructures in the grafted layer. We proposed a model of these segregated pinned micelles and the corresponding reverse micelles (craterlike structures) featuring different segregation states of hydrophobic polystyrene and hydrophilic poly(acrylic acid) arms. The arms undergo conformational rearrangements in selective solvents in a controlled and reversible fashion. These nanoscale structural reorganizations define adaptive macroscopic wetting surface properties of the amphiphilic Y-shaped brushes. This surface structure and switchable behavior can be considered as a promising way toward the patterning of solid substrates with adaptive nanowells, which could be used for trapping of adsorbing nanoscale objects.

Preparation of reactive surfaces by electrografting

The electrografting process has been applied to a new monomer in order to induce reactivity to the surface of various conducting substrates which are then appropriate for the anchoring of a large variety of molecules (catalysts, proteins, amino-polymers etc.).