title: A combinatorial approach to study solvent-induced self-assembly of mixed poly(methyl methacrylate)/polystyrene brushes on planar silica substrates: effect of relative grafting density.
abstract: This article reports the study of the effect of relative grafting densities of two polymer chains on solvent-induced self-assembly of mixed poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA)/polystyrene (PS) brushes through a combinatorial approach. Gradient-mixed PMMA/PS brushes were synthesized from a gradient-mixed initiator-terminated monolayer by combining atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and nitroxide mediated radical polymerization (NMRP) in a two-step process. The gradient-mixed initiator-terminated monolayer was fabricated by first formation of a gradient in density of an ATRP initiator through vapor diffusion followed by backfilling of an NMRP-initiator-terminated trichlorosilane. After treatment of a gradient-mixed brush whose PS Mn was slightly lower than that of PMMA with glacial acetic acid, a selective solvent for PMMA, relatively ordered nanodomains were observed in the region where the ratio of PS to PMMA grafting density (number of polymer chains/nm2) was in the range from 0.67 to 2.17 and the overall grafting density was approximately 0.85 polymer chains/nm2. Contact angle hysteresis were high (> or =40 degrees ) in this region and XPS studies confirmed that the PMMA chains were enriched at the outermost layer. The nanodomains are speculated to be of a micellar structure with PS chains forming the core shielded by PMMA chains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee 37996, USA. zhao@novell.chem.utk.edu
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zhao