title: Dynamic materials from microgel multilayers.
abstract: Multilayer coatings made from hydrogel microparticles (microgels) are conceptually very simple materials: thin films composed of microgel building blocks held together by polyelectrolyte "glue". However, the apparent simplicity of their fabrication and structure belies extremely complex properties, including those of "dynamic" coatings that display rapid self-healing behavior in the presence of solvent. This contribution covers our work with these materials and highlights some of the key findings regarding damage mechanisms, healing processes, film structure/composition, and how the variation of fabrication parameters can impact self-healing behavior.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the Petit Institute for Bioengineering & Bioscience, Georgia Institute of Technology , Atlanta, Georgia 30332, United States.
authors.forename: Mark William
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Spears
authors.forename: Emily S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Herman
authors.forename: Jeffrey C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Gaulding
authors.forename: L Andrew
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Lyon
mesh_terms: D005782:Gels / Q000737:chemistry*; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D005782:Gels; D011108:Polymers