Self-assembly of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) copolymers at the air-water interface: is dewetting the genesis of surface aggregate formation?

Langmuir and Langmuir-Blodgett films of multifunctional, amphiphilic polyethers with cholesterol moieties

Langmuir films of multifunctional, hydrophilic polyethers containing a hydrophobic cholesterol group (Ch) were studied by surface pressure-mean molecular area (π-mmA) measurements and Brewster angle microscopy (BAM). The polyethers were either homopolymers or diblock copolymers of linear poly(glycerol) (lPG), linear poly(glyceryl glycidyl ether) (lPGG), linear poly(ethylene glycol) (lPEG), or hyperbranched poly(glycerol) (hbPG). Surface pressure measurements revealed that the homopolymers lPG and hbPG did not stay at the water surface after spreading and solvent evaporation, in contrast to lPEG. Because of the incorporation of the Ch group in the polymer structure, stable Langmuir films were formed by Ch-lPG(n), Ch-lPGG(n), and Ch-hbPG(n). The Ch-hbPG(n), Ch-lPEG(n), Ch-lPEG(n)-b-lPG(m), Ch-lPEG(n)-b-lPGG(m), and Ch-lPEG(n)-b-hbPG(m) systems showed an extended plateau region assigned to a phase transition involving the Ch groups. Typical hierarchically ordered morphologies of the LB films on hydrophilic substrates were observed for all Ch-initiated polymers. All LB films showed that Ch of the Ch-initiated homopolymers is able to crystallize. This strong tendency of self-aggregation then triggers further dewetting effects of the respective polyether entities. Fingerlike morphologies are observed for Ch-lPEG(69), since the lPEG(69) entity is able to undergo crystallization after transfer onto the silicon substrate.

Strands, networks, and continents from polystyrene dewetting at the air-water interface: implications for amphiphilic block copolymer self-assembly

We demonstrate that nanoscale aggregates similar to those formed via amphiphilic block copolymer self-assembly at the air-water interface, including strands, networks, and continents, can be generated by the simple spreading of PS homopolymer solutions on water. Two different PS homopolymers of different molecular weight (PS-405k, M(n) = 405 000 g mol(-1) and PS-33k, M(n) = 33 000 g mol(-1)) are spread at the air-water interface at various spreading concentrations ranging from 0.25 to 3.0 mg/mL. Aggregate formation is driven by PS dewetting from water as the spreading solvent evaporates. We propose that a high spreading concentration or a high molecular weight lead to chain entanglements that restrict macromolecular mobility in the solution, enabling the kinetic trapping of nanostructures associated with early and intermediate stages of PS dewetting. Comparison of PS-405k with a mainly hydrophobic PS-b-PEO block copolymer of similar molecular weight (PSEO-392k, M(n) = 392 000 g mol(-1), 2.0 wt % PEO) allows the effect of a relatively short surface active block on aggregate formation to be investigated. We show that whereas the PEO block is not a required component for the formation of strands and other nonglobular aggregates, it does increase the number of these aggregates at a given spreading concentration and decreases the minimum spreading concentration at which these aggregates are observed, along with decreasing the dimensions and polydispersity of specific surface features. The results provide supporting evidence for the role of PS dewetting in the generation of multiple PS-b-PEO aggregate morphologies at the air-water interface, as originally described in earlier paper from our group.

Nanostrand formation of block copolymers at the air/water interface

Langmuir-Blodgett monolayers consisting of a network of nanostrands have occasionally been reported in the literature, but are often coexistent with other morphologies, which is not useful for potential applications. With the use of PS-P4VP/PDP, a polystyrene-poly(4-vinyl pyridine) diblock copolymer of 12 mol % VP content mixed with 3-pentadecylphenol, it is shown that the disordered nanostrand network morphology can be obtained reproducibly and uniformly over large surface areas by spreading chloroform solutions of relatively high copolymer concentration. Use of a more slowly evaporating spreading solvent, 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane, and a low subphase temperature, 8-9 °C, results in much more densely aligned nanostrands. Poorly spreading solvents such as nitrobenzene produce the well-known fingerprint pattern often observed in spin- or dip-coated thin films of block copolymers. A mechanism for nanostrand network formation is proposed that involves the momentary formation of a fingerprint morphology in spreading drops followed by its breakup at the level of the mobile P4VP/PDP stripes as spreading continues, leaving P4VP-anchored PS nanostrands floating on the water surface.

Temperature tunable micellization of polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine) at Si-ionic liquid interface

Highly ordered and stable micelles formed from both symmetric and asymmetric block copolymers of polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine) (PS-b-P2VP) at the Si-ionic liquid (IL) interface have been investigated by scanning force microscopy (SFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate IL, a selective and temperature-tunable solvent for the P2VP block, was used and gave rise to block copolymer micelles having different morphologies that strongly depended on the annealing temperature. The effects of film thickness, molecular weight of block copolymers, and experimental conditions, such as preannealing, rinsing, and substrate properties, on the morphologies of block copolymer micelles were also studied. In addition, spherical micelles consisting of PS core and P2VP shell could also be obtained by core-corona inversion by annealing the as-coated micellar film in the IL at high temperatures. The possible mechanism for micelle formation is discussed.

Carbazole peripheral poly(benzyl ether) dendrimers at the air-water interface: electrochemical cross-linking and electronanopatterning

A Langmuir film of a third-generation carbazole-terminated poly(benzyl ether) (G3-CtPBE) dendrimer was investigated at the air-water interface. Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films were deposited on gold substrates and investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM), followed by electrochemical and electronanopatterning studies. For the G3-CtPBE dendrimer aggregates, variable concentration and surface pressure gave control over aggregate size and shape at the air-water interface. At a lower concentration C1, aggregate-spherical nanoparticles were observed with a face-on or overlapped orientation with increasing surface pressure. However, at a higher concentration C2, their surface morphologies exhibited circular and rod-shaped aggregates with respect to increasing surface pressure attributed to an edge-on configurational change. Moreover, in situ simultaneous interfacial potentiostatic electrodeposition with LB transfer at the air-water interface was employed for the first time with the G3-CtPBE dendrimers onto a hydrophilic surface under constant voltage (i.e., close to the oxidation potential of G3-CtPBE for electrochemical cross-linking). Electrochemical cross-linking on G3-CtPBE dendrimer LB films was also performed ex situ to investigate electrochemical and optical properties. Finally, as an application of a cross-linkable LB film, electronanolithography was carried out to prepare nanopatterns using the current sensing atomic force microscopy (CS-AFM) technique.

Langmuir-Blodgett films of biocompatible poly(HPMA)-block-poly(lauryl methacrylate) and poly(HPMA)-random-poly(lauryl methacrylate): influence of polymer structure on membrane formation and stability

Membranes based on functional biocompatible polymers can be regarded as a useful model system to study biological interactions, e.g. antibody-antigen interactions or protein polymer interactions. These model systems may give a better insight into these processes and may help to find suitable polymeric structures offering biocompatibility as well as reduced polymer protein interaction. In this respect, Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) layer formation at the air/water (A/W) interface is studied in respect to polymer architecture in this article. For this purpose, narrowly distributed N-(2-hydroxypropyl)-methacrylamide (HPMA) random and block copolymers have been prepared by the RAFT polymerization method. For random copolymers different molecular weights were prepared. As for the block copolymers also the ratio of hydrophilic and hydrophobic units was varied in order to study the influence of hydrophobic block length on collapse pressure and area. The molecular weights of all polymers were around 15 kDa and 30 kDa. In the case of block copolymers we found a direct correlation of the length of the hydrophobic block to the collapse area. Furthermore, hysteresis experiments clearly point out that block copolymers form stable LB layers. No remarkable changes in collapse pressure or area could be observed. In contrast the area occupied by random copolymers changes at each hysteresis cycle indicating a loss of polymer to the aqueous subphase. In addition the LB layers were transferred onto mica substrates. The block copolymers formed stable and defect free membranes over an area of 100 microm(2) with a roughness (rms) 1.3-1.4 A. On the contrary, membranes based on random copolymers turned out to have a higher surface roughness. Our findings clearly underline the influence of polymer structure on the LB layer formation at the A/W interface.

Patterning block copolymer aggregates via Langmuir-Blodgett transfer to microcontact-printed substrates

We demonstrate a new strategy for producing hierarchical polymer nanostructures, which combines nanoscale self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymers at the air-water interface with microscale templated assembly of the resulting aggregates on chemically patterned substrates. Aggregates are formed via interfacial self-assembly of 141k polystyrene-b-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO, MW = 141k, 11.4 wt % PEO) or a blend of 185k PS-b-PEO (MW = 185k, 18.9 wt % PEO) and PS-coated CdS nanoparticles to form strandlike copolymer or copolymer-nanoparticle aggregates. Using Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) techniques, the aggregates are then transferred to patterned substrates possessing alternating hydrophilic/hydrophobic stripes, obtained by microcontact printing octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) on glass. The aggregates are transferred under various conditions of surface pressure, orientation of the patterned substrate, and withdrawal speed. Templated assembly of aggregates into the hydrophilic substrate domains is achieved when the hydrophilic/hydrophobic stripes are oriented perpendicular to the water surface during LB transfer; this is explained by surface energy heterogeneities along the subphase-substrate contact line, which induce selective dewetting and concomitant monolayer rearrangement at the drying front. In contrast, parallel orientation of stripes results in nonselective transfer of the monolayer without registration to the underlying surface pattern. By studying the effect of surface pressure, we show that packing constraints imposed by compression of aggregates to high surface densities prevent the formation of patterned LB films that match the established periodicity of the OTS-patterned glass. As well, it is shown that efficient transfer of aggregates to the patterned glass requires slower substrate withdrawal speeds compared to transfer to unpatterned hydrophilic glass.

Hierarchical organization of poly(ethylene oxide)-block-poly(isobutylene) and hydrophobically modified Fe(2)O(3) nanoparticles at the air/water interface and on solid supports

Langmuir monolayers and Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) film morphologies of block copolymers and hydrophobically modified iron oxide nanoparticles were studied by surface pressure-mean molecular area (pi-mmA) measurements and by tapping mode atomic force microscopy (AFM). The amphiphilic diblock copolymers consisted of a hydrophilic poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) block and a hydrophobic poly(isobutylene) (PIB) block. The pi-mmA isotherm of PEO(97)-b-PIB(37) (the subscripts refer to the respective degrees of polymerization) at the air/water interface had an extended plateau reflecting the extension of PEO chains into the water subphase at a surface pressure of 10 mN.m(-1), which is absent for the more hydrophobic PEO(19)-b-PIB(130). Iron oxide (Fe(2)O(3)) nanoparticles capped with oleic acid ligands as the shell were dispersed in the amphiphilic block copolymers at the air/water interface to prevent macroscopic aggregation of the particles. When the nanoparticles were mixed with PEO(97)-b-PIB(37), using a particle to polymer chain ratio of 1:100, macroscopic aggregation of the nanoparticles was not observed, and the pi-mmA isotherm was dominated by PEO(97)-b-PIB(37). Monolayers of block copolymers were transferred at different surface pressures from the air/water interface to hydrophilic silicon substrates using the Langmuir-Blodgett technique. The AFM images of PEO(97)-b-PIB(37) LB films depicted not only the typical finger-like morphology of the crystallized PEO blocks but also PIB blocks arranged in vertical columns growing perpendicular to the substrate surface. The columns are characteristic for PEO(19)-b-PIB(130) LB films after transfer at high surface pressures and can be assigned to a mesomorphic PIB phase with ordered chains. Finally, it was observed that small clusters of a few Fe(2)O(3) nanoparticles occupy the top of PIB phases after compression and transfer of the block copolymer nanoparticle mixtures to solid supports.

Block copolymer strands with internal microphase separation structure via self-assembly at the air-water interface

Block copolymer microphase separation in the bulk is coupled to amphiphilic block copolymer self-assembly at the air-water interface to yield hierarchical Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) structures combining organization at the meso- and nanoscales. A blend of polystyrene-b-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO) (Mn=141K, 11.4 wt % PEO) and polystyrene-b-poly(butadiene) (PS-b-PB) (Mn=31.9K, 28.5 wt % PB) containing a PS-b-PB weight fraction of f=0.75 was deposited at the air-water interface, resulting in the spontaneous generation of aggregates with multiscale organization, including nanoscale cylinders in mesoscale strands, via evaporation of the spreading solvent. The resulting features were characterized in LB films via AFM and TEM and at the air-water interface via Langmuir compression isotherms. Blends containing lower PS-b-PB contents formed mesoscale aggregate morphologies of continents and strands (f=0.50) or mesoscale continents with holes (f=0.25), but without the internal nanoscale organization found in the f=0.75 blend. The interfacial self-assembly of pure PS-b-PB at the air-water interface (f=1) yielded taller and more irregularly shaped aggregates than blends containing PS-b-PEO, indicating the integral role of the amphiphilic copolymer in regulating the mesoscale organization of the hierarchically structured features.

Surface segregation of fluorinated moieties on random copolymer films controlled by random-coil conformation of polymer chains in solution

The relationship between solution properties, film-forming methods, and the solid surface structures of random copolymers composed of butyl methacrylate and dodecafluorheptyl methylacrylate (DFHMA) was investigated by contact angle measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy, and surface tension measurements. The results, based on thermodynamic considerations, demonstrated that the random copolymer chain conformation at the solution/air interface greatly affected the surface structure of the resulting film, thereby determining the surface segregation of fluorinated moieties on films obtained by various film-forming techniques. When the fluorinated monomer content of the copolymer solution was low, entropic forces dominated the interfacial structure, with the perfluoroalkyl groups unable to migrate to the solution/air interface and thus becoming buried in a random-coil chain conformation. When employing this copolymer solution for film preparation by spin-coating, the copolymer chains in solution were likely extended due to centrifugal forces, thereby weakening the entropy effect of the polymer chains. Consequently, this resulted in the segregation of the fluorinated moieties on the film surface. For the films prepared by casting, the perfluoroalkyl groups were, similar to those in solution, incapable of segregating at the film surface and were thus buried in the random-coil chains. When the copolymers contained a high content of DFHMA, the migration of perfluoroalkyl groups at the solution/air interface was controlled by enthalpic forces, and the perfluoroalkyl groups segregated at the surface of the film regardless of the film-forming technique. The aim of the present work was to obtain an enhanced understanding of the formation mechanism of the chemical structure on the surface of the polymer film, while demonstrating that film-forming methods may be used in practice to promote the segregation of fluorinated moieties on film surfaces.

Interfacial behavior of poly(isoprene-b-methyl methacrylate) diblock copolymers and their blends with polystyrene at the air-water interface

The interfacial behavior of poly(isoprene-b-methyl methacrylate) diblock copolymers (PI-b-PMMA), with similar PMMA blocks but differing in the percentage of PI segments, SP19 (5% PI) and SP38 (52% PI), was studied at the air-water interface. The surface pressure-area (pi-A) isotherms, compression-expansion cycles, and relaxation curves were compared with those of the PMMA homopolymer. The short hydrophobic PI block of SP19 does not contribute to the mean molecular area at low surface pressures and yet has a negative contribution (condensing effect) when the surface pressure increases. On the contrary, the long PI block of SP38 contributes considerably to the surface area from low to high surface pressures. The A-t relaxation curves compare well with those of PMMA at low surface pressures (pi = 2 mN.m-1), but not at intermediate and high pressures (pi = 10, 30 mN.m-1), where a clear dependence on the length of the PI block was observed. The quantitative analysis of the relaxation curves at high pressures shows both a fast and slow component, attributed mostly to the local and middle-to-long-range reorganization of PMMA chains, respectively. PI-b-PMMA diblocks and PMMA were further blended with PS. The PS and PMMA are immiscible at the air-water interface. The addition of PS does not change the pi-A isotherm of PMMA, but the copolymers blended with PS form films that are more condensed at low pressures. The Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films transferred onto mica substrates were analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM). The LB films of single diblocks are uniform, while those of PI-b-PMMA and PMMA blended with PS show aggregates with variable patterns.