Lamellar phase of a symmetric triblock copolymer

Improved Elastic Recovery from ABC Triblock Terpolymers

The promise of ABC triblock terpolymers for improving the mechanical properties of thermoplastic elastomers is demonstrated by comparison with symmetric ABA/CBC analogs having similar molecular weights and volume fraction of B and A/C domains. The ABC architecture enhances elasticity (up to 98% recovery over 10 cycles) in part through essentially full chain bridging between discrete hard domains leading to the minimization of mechanically unproductive loops. In addition, the unique phase space of ABC triblocks also enables the fraction of hard-block domains to be higher (fhard ≈ 0.4) while maintaining elasticity, which is traditionally only possible with non-linear architectures or highly asymmetric ABA triblock copolymers. These advantages of ABC triblock terpolymers provide a tunable platform to create materials with practical applications while improving our fundamental understanding of chain conformation and structure-property relationships in block copolymers.

Atypical vesicles and membranes with monolayer and multilayer structures formed by graft copolymers with diblock side-chains: nonlamellar structures and curvature-enhanced permeability

Graft copolymers with diblock side-chains A_m(-graft-B₃A_y)_n in a selective solvent have been reported to self-assemble into vesicles, but the structure is expected to differ distinctly from those of lipid bilayers. Surprisingly, the number of alternating hydrophobic A-block and hydrophilic B-block layers in the vesicle can vary from a monolayer to multilayers such as the hepta-layer, subject to the same copolymer concentration. The area density of the copolymer layer is not uniform across the membrane. This structural difference among different layers is attributed to the neighboring environment and the curvature of the layer. Because of the unusual polymer conformations, nonlamellar structures of polymersomes are formed, and they are much more intricate than those of liposomes. In fact, a copolymer can contribute to a single or two hydrophilic layers, and it can provide up to three hydrophobic layers. The influence of the backbone length (m) and side-chain length (y) and the permeation dynamics are also studied. The thickness of hydrophobic layers is found to increase with increasing side-chain length but is not sensitive to the backbone length. Although the permeation time increases with the layer number for planar membranes, the opposite behavior is observed for spherical vesicles owing to the curvature-enhanced permeability associated with Laplace pressure.

Loop and Bridge Conformations of ABA Triblock Comb Copolymers: A Conformational Assessment for Molecular Composites

We computationally investigate the conformational behavior, “bridging” chain, between different the phase-separated domains vs “looping” chain on the same domain, for two chain architectures of ABA triblock copolymers, one with a linear architecture (L-TBC) and the other with comb architecture (C-TBC) at various segregation regimes using dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) simulations. The power-law relation between the bridge fraction (Φ) and the interaction parameter (χ) for C-TBC is found to be Φ∼χ−1.6 in the vicinity of the order-disorder transition (χODT), indicating a drastic conversion from the bridge to the loop conformation. When χ further increases, the bridge-loop conversions slow down to have the power law, Φ∼χ−0.18, approaching the theoretical power law Φ∼χ−1/9 predicted in the strong segregation limit. The conformational assessment conducted in the present study can provide a strategy of designing optimal material and processing conditions for triblock copolymer either with linear or comb architecture to be used for thermoplastic elastomer or molecular nanocomposites.

Triply Helical Giant Domain with Homochirality in a Terpolymer Blend System

Hexagonally packed coaxial triply helical domains with a mesoscopic length scale in matrices were created from an S₁IS₂P tetrablock terpolymer/S_h homopolymer blend system, wherein S₁, S₂, and S_h denote polystyrene, I is polyisoprene, and P represents poly(2-vinylpyridine). Two terpolymers, i.e., S₁IS₂P-3 (S₁/I/S₂/P = 0.50/0.17/0.19/0.14, M = 134k) and S₁IS₂P-4 (S₁/I/S₂/P = 0.58/0.16/0.10/0.16, M = 173k), were blended with S_h (M = 3k) at various concentrations. In the S₁IS₂P-3/S_h = 80/20 blend, the helical domain of P (o.d.= 19 nm; h.p. = 34 nm) was displayed by TEM, and the helical I phase (o.d. = 55 nm; i.d. = 29 nm; h.p. = 34 nm) was clearly demonstrated by 3D-TEM tomography. Essentially the same structure was confirmed to be created from the S₁IS₂P-4/S_h blend. These findings point out that S₂ chains fill the gap between the I and P helices, and hence the intermediate S phase also has a helical nature. Moreover, it is worth noting that grains composed of hexagonally packed helices reveal homochirality.

Hexagonally Packed Cylindrical Structures with Multiple Satellites from Pentablock Quarterpolymers of the AB1CB2D Type and Their Blends with Homopolymers

Three kinds of hexagonally packed cylindrical (HPC) structures with 10/8 satellites have been found from a neat pentablock quarterpolymer of the AS₁IS₂P type, composed of poly(4-vinylbenzyldimethylamine) (A), polystyrene (S), polyisoprene (I), and poly(2-vinylpyridine) (P), and block polymer/homopolymer blends. AS₁IS₂P-2 (M = 276k, ϕ_A/ϕ_S1/ϕ_I/ϕ_S2/ϕ_P = 0.08/0.17/0.12/0.33/0.30) shows HPC of P with 10 single-arrayed I satellites and 6 A subsatellites in the S matrix, where the I/P ratio number is 5, while AS₁IS₂P-2 (M = 325k, ϕ_A/ϕ_S1/ϕ_I/ϕ_S2/ϕ_P = 0.07/0.31/0.14/0.18/0.30)/S_h(M;11k) = 90/10 blend reveals another HPC of P with 10 I satellites, giving an I/P ratio of 6, whose array of I is a single/double mixture. Moreover, AS₁IS₂P-1/S_h/A_h(M;9k) = 90/5/5 blend represents two enantiomeric HPC packings with 8 double-arrayed I satellites having an I/P ratio of 7, which can be considered to be approximants of two enantiomeric 3.3.3.3.6 Archimedean tilings. These structures were conceived to be formed by the enhanced miscibility of tail A-chains with added homopolymers, resulting in an increase of the (A + S)/I interaction leading to the split of I domains.

Synthesis of well-defined di- and triblock acrylic copolymers consisting of hard poly(dicyclopentanyl acrylate) and soft poly(alkyl acrylate) segments by organocatalyzed group transfer polymerization and their glass transition behavior

Well-defined acrylic block copolymers with hard poly(dicyclopentanyl acrylate) and soft poly(n-alkylacrylate) blocks prepared by GTP are observed to undergo microphase separation by rheometry except for the crystallizable poly(n-dodecyl acrylate) series.

From Order to Disorder: Computational Design of Triblock Amphiphiles with 1 nm Domains

Using molecular dynamics simulations and transferable force fields, we designed a series of symmetric triblock amphiphiles (or high-χ block oligomers) comprising incompatible sugar-based (A) and hydrocarbon (B) blocks that can self-assemble into ordered nanostructures with sub-1 nm domains and full domain pitches as small as 1.2 nm. Depending on the chain length and block sequence, the ordered morphologies include lamellae, perforated lamellae, and hexagonally perforated lamellae. The self-assembly of these amphiphiles bears some similarities, but also some differences, to those formed by symmetric triblock polymers. In lamellae formed by ABA amphiphiles, the fraction of B blocks "bridging" adjacent polar domains is nearly unity, much higher than that found for symmetric triblock polymers, and the bridging molecules adopt elongated conformations. In contrast, "looping" conformations are prevalent for A blocks of BAB amphiphiles. Above the order-disorder transition temperature, the disordered states are locally well-segregated yet the B blocks of ABA amphiphiles are significantly less stretched than in the lamellar phases. Analysis of both hydrogen-bonded and nonpolar clusters reveals the bicontinuous nature of these network phases. This simulation study furnishes detailed insights into structure-property relationships for mesophase formation on the 1 nm length scale that will aid further miniaturization for numerous applications.

Dynamics of bridge-loop transformation in a membrane with mixed monolayer/bilayer structures

Instead of forming a typical bilayer or monolayer membrane, both the bridge (I-shape) and loop (U-shape) conformations coexist in the planar membranes formed by ABA triblock copolymers in a selective solvent. The non-equilibrium and equilibrium relaxation dynamics of polymer conformations are monitored. The non-equilibrium relaxation time depends on the initial composition and increases with an increase in the immiscibility between A and B blocks. The equilibrium composition of the loop-shape polymer is independent of the initial composition and A-B immiscibility. However, the extent of equilibrium composition fluctuations subsides as the A and B blocks become highly incompatible. The influences of the A-B immiscibility on the geometrical, mechanical, and transport properties of the membrane have also been investigated. As the immiscibility increases, the overall membrane thickness and the B block layer thickness (h) increase because of the increment in the molecular packing density. As a result, both the stretching (K_A) and bending (K_B) moduli grow significantly with the increasing A-B immiscibility. Consistent with the case of typical membranes, the ratio K_B/K_Ah² = 2 × 10^-3 is a constant. Although the lateral diffusivity of polymers is insensitive to immiscibility, the membrane permeability decreases substantially as the A-B immiscibility is increased.

Synthesis, molecular characterization and self-assembly of (PS-b-PDMS)n type linear (n = 1, 2) and star (n = 3, 4) block copolymers

Well-defined linear (n = 1, 2) and star (n = 3, 4) architecture (PS-b-PDMS)_n block copolymers were synthesized by anionic polymerization in combination with chlorosilane chemistry. The self-assembly is significantly influenced by entropy constraints for the star samples due to overcrowding.

Directed self-assembly of high-chi block copolymer for nano fabrication of bit patterned media via solvent annealing

We report the formation of nanoimprint master templates that can be used for the fabrication of bit patterned media (BPM). The template was formed by directed self-assembly, with solvent annealing, of a symmetric ABA triblock copolymer to form perpendicularly oriented lamellae on chemical patterns. We used a high-χ block copolymer, poly(2-vinyl pyridine)-block-polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinyl pyridine) to achieve smaller feature sizes than are possible with polystyrene-block-poly(methyl methacrylate). The work shows that triblock copolymers can provide a large processing window in terms of pitch commensurability. Using block-selective infiltration (atomic layer deposition with sequential long soaking/purge cycles), an alumina composite with high etch resistance was specifically incorporated into the polar and hydrophilic P2VP domains. Subsequently, the surface pattern was successfully transferred into underlying Si substrates by etching with a fluorine-containing plasma to create a nanoimprint master. The line/space pattern of the nanoimprint master met the BPM fabrication requirement of defectivity <10(-3). For demonstration purposes, the nanoimprint master was used to imprint a replica pattern of photoresist on a quartz wafer.

Directed Self-Assembly of Triblock Copolymer on Chemical Patterns for Sub-10-nm Nanofabrication via Solvent Annealing

Directed self-assembly (DSA) of block copolymers (BCPs) is a leading strategy to pattern at sublithographic resolution in the technology roadmap for semiconductors and is the only known solution to fabricate nanoimprint templates for the production of bit pattern media. While great progress has been made to implement block copolymer lithography with features in the range of 10-20 nm, patterning solutions below 10 nm are still not mature. Many BCP systems self-assemble at this length scale, but challenges remain in simultaneously tuning the interfacial energy atop the film to control the orientation of BCP domains, designing materials, templates, and processes for ultra-high-density DSA, and establishing a robust pattern transfer strategy. Among the various solutions to achieve domains that are perpendicular to the substrate, solvent annealing is advantageous because it is a versatile method that can be applied to a diversity of materials. Here we report a DSA process based on chemical contrast templates and solvent annealing to fabricate 8 nm features on a 16 nm pitch. To make this possible, a number of innovations were brought in concert with a common platform: (1) assembling the BCP in the phase-separated, solvated state, (2) identifying a larger process window for solvated triblock vs diblock BCPs as a function of solvent volume fraction, (3) employing templates for sub-10-nm BCP systems accessible by lithography, and (4) integrating a robust pattern transfer strategy by vapor infiltration of organometallic precursors for selective metal oxide synthesis to prepare an inorganic hard mask.

Multiblock copolymers prepared by patterned modification: Analytical theory and computer simulations

We describe a special type of multiblock copolymers which are synthesized by a hypothetic procedure of the modification of monomer units in a polymer melt according to a certain geometrical criterion. In particular, we explore the case of lamellar-like structures: the sequence statistics of the resulting multiblock copolymers is described and their ability to self-assemble is studied. It is found that the block-size distribution P(k) for such random copolymers contains a large fraction of short blocks with the asymptotic dependence ∼k(-3/2), where k is the block size. A characteristic feature of such multiblock copolymers is their extremely high block-size polydispersity with the polydispersity index being proportional to the space period of the modification. The morphological behavior of such copolymers is simulated by means of dissipative particle dynamics. A stable self-assembled lamellar structure is observed, but the domain size appears to be sufficiently larger than the initial pattern period.

Directed Self-Assembly of Poly(2-vinylpyridine)-b-polystyrene-b-poly(2-vinylpyridine) Triblock Copolymer with Sub-15 nm Spacing Line Patterns Using a Nanoimprinted Photoresist Template

Low molecular weight P2VP-b-PS-b-P2VP triblock copolymer (poly(2-vinlypyridine)-block-polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine)] is doped with copper chloride and microphase separated into lamellar line patterns with ultrahigh area density. Salt-doped P2VP-b-PS-b-P2VP triblock copolymer is self-assembled on the top of the nanoimprinted photoresist template, and metallic nanowires with long-range ordering are prepared with platinum-salt infiltration and plasma etching.

Dual modes of self-assembly in superstrongly segregated bicomponent triblock copolymer melts

While ABC triblock copolymers are known to form a plethora of dual-mode (i.e., order-on-order) nanostructures, bicomponent ABA triblock copolymers normally self-assemble into single morphologies at thermodynamic incompatibility levels up to the strong-segregation regime. In this study, we employ on-lattice Monte Carlo simulations to examine the phase behavior of molecularly asymmetric A(1)BA(2) copolymers possessing chemically identical endblocks differing significantly in length. In the limit of superstrong segregation, interstitial micelles composed of the minority A(2) endblock are observed to arrange into two-dimensional hexagonal arrays along the midplane of B-rich lamellae in compositionally symmetric (50:50 A:B) copolymers. Simulations performed here establish the coupled molecular-asymmetry and incompatibility conditions under which such micelles form, as well as the temperature dependence of their aggregation number. Beyond an optimal length of the A(2) endblock, the propensity for interstitial micelles to develop decreases, and the likelihood for colocation of both endblocks in the A(1)-rich lamellae increases. Interestingly, the strong-segregation theory of Semenov developed to explain the formation of free micelles by diblock copolymers accurately predicts the onset of interstitial micelles confined at nanoscale dimensions between parallel lamellae.

Entangled triblock copolymer gel: morphological and mechanical properties

The morphological and mechanical properties of entangled ABA triblock copolymer gels, where solvent were selective to the midblock, were studied as a function of polymer concentration using a novel dissipative particle dynamics model which includes a modified segmental repulsive potential that restricts chain crossing. Morphological properties, such as micelle size, distance between micelles, and the bridge fraction, were calculated as a function of concentration. Although the micelle size was shown to have a strong dependence on concentration, the bridge fraction and distance between micelles were shown to plateau at moderate concentrations. Deformation under uni-axial tension was also performed to extract the cross-link and entanglement contribution to the elastic modulus. Scaling results qualitatively agree with other theoretical predications.

Self-assembled morphologies of ABA triblock copolymer brushes in selective solvents

A simulated annealing method is used to investigate the self-assembled morphologies of symmetric ABA triblock copolymer brushes, formed by one end of the A-blocks tethered onto a planar surface, immersed in a solvent selective for the middle B-blocks. The morphological dependences of the brushes on polymer grafting density and block lengths are investigated systematically. Phase diagrams for systems with different grafting densities are constructed. The simulation results show that the grafted amphiphilic triblock copolymers can self-assemble to form a variety of complicated morphologies which can be classified in terms of the number of A-rich layers in the morphology. In particular, the formation of the structures with one A-rich layer or called "folded" brush structures is consistent with the speculation from the experimental studies of ABA triblock copolymer brushes. More detailed structures depend on the grafting density and the lengths of the blocks. Furthermore, at a high grafting density, the effects of the lengths of blocks and the interaction energies between different species in the system on the conformation of chains are investigated to illustrate the formation mechanisms of self-assembled morphologies of the amphiphilic triblock copolymer brushes.

Directed assembly of non-equilibrium ABA triblock copolymer morphologies on nanopatterned substrates

The majority of past work on directed assembly of block copolymers on chemically nanopatterned surfaces (or chemical patterns) has focused on AB diblock copolymers, and the resulting morphologies have generally corresponded to equilibrium states. Here we report a study on directed assembly of ABA triblock copolymers. Directed assembly of thin films of symmetric poly(methyl methacrylate-b-styrene-b-methyl methacrylate) (PMMA-b-PS-b-PMMA) triblock copolymers is shown to be capable of achieving a high degree of perfection, registration, and accuracy on striped patterns having periods, L(s), commensurate with the bulk period of the copolymer, L(o). When L(s) is incommensurate with L(o), the triblock copolymer domains can reach dimensions up to 55% larger or 13% smaller than L(o). The range over which triblock copolymers tolerate departures from a commensurate L(s) is significantly larger than that accessible with the corresponding diblock copolymer material on analogous directed assembly systems. The assembly kinetics of the triblock copolymer is approximately 3 orders of magnitude slower than observed in the diblock system. Theoretically informed simulations are used to interpret our experimental observations; a thermodynamic analysis reveals that triblocks can form highly ordered, non-equilibrium metastable structures that do not arise in the diblock.

Effects of compositional asymmetry in phase behavior of ABA triblock copolymer melts from Monte Carlo simulation

We simulate ABA triblock copolymer melts using a lattice Monte Carlo method, known as cooperative motion algorithm, probing various degrees of compositional asymmetry. Selected order-disorder transition lines are determined in terms of the segment incompatibility, quantified by product χN , and the triblock asymmetry parameters, α and β. We correlate the results of the simulation with the self-consistent field theory and an experimental study of polyisoprene-polystyrene-polyisoprene triblock melt by Hamersky and coworkers. In particular, we confirm the mean-field prediction that for highly asymmetric triblocks the short A -block is localized in the middle of the B -domain due to an entropic advantage. This results in the middle block relaxation and is consistent with the experimental data indicating that as the relatively short A -blocks are grown into AB diblock, from the B -block side, the order-disorder transition temperature is considerably depressed.

Polylactide-poly(dimethylsiloxane)-polylactide triblock copolymers as multifunctional materials for nanolithographic applications

Highly immiscible block copolymers are attractive materials for applications in nanolithography due to their ability to self-assemble on length scales that are difficult to access by conventional lithography. The incorporation of inorganic domains into such block copolymers provides etch contrast that can potentially reduce processing times and costs in nanolithographic applications. We explored thin films of polylactide-poly(dimethylsiloxane)-polylactide (PLA-PDMS-PLA) triblock copolymers as multifunctional nanolithographic templates. We demonstrate the formation of well-ordered arrays of hexagonally packed PDMS cylinders oriented normal to the substrate, the orthogonal etchability of these cylinders and the PLA matrix, and the formation of etch-resistant domains that can be used as pattern transfer masks.

Interface-induced morphology transition in triblock copolymer films swollen with low-molecular-weight homopolymer

The morphology transition due to midblock swelling with low-molecular-weight homopolymer polystyrene of an ABA-type triblock copolymer polyparamethylstyrene-block-polystyrene-block-polyparamethylstyrene at the buried silicon substrate interface is studied as a function of different substrate surface treatments. With grazing incidence small-angle neutron scattering (GISANS), high interface sensitivity is reached. The powderlike oriented lamellar structure in the bulk becomes oriented along the surface normal in the vicinity of the substrate. A transition of the lamellar into a cylinder phase at the polymer-silicon interface is probed with GISANS. The transition is induced by the addition of the homopolymer, but the modification of the short-ranged interface potential of the substrate influences the amount of homopolymer that is necessary for this transition. Without and with 0.1 vol % added homopolymer, the lateral spacing is stretched at the interface as compared to the bulk whereas for a higher added amount of homopolymer no stretching occurs.