Previously, formation of polymer brushes on derivatized silica surfaces by means of the grafting-to approach was found to exhibit three-regime kinetics.  The three regimes were explained as follows: (1) rapid grafting to a bare surface to form a mushroom layer (undeformed chains), (2) a latent period during which additional chains are unable to surmount the barrier presented by the mushroom layer, and (3) resumption of very slow grafting as additional chains surmount the barrier in a self-accelerating process.   This physical explanation suggests that three-regime kinetics should be observed whenever monodisperse chains are grafted to any surface.  Grafting studies were extended to a gold surface for which the kinetics was monitored directly with the quartz crystal microbalance (QCM).   The QCM revealed new information about the penetration of the brush layer by additional chains and led to identification of the factors governing the length of each regime.

Quartz crystal microbalance shows that three-regime kinetics for polymer brush formation by grafting-to approach is general

245th National Meeting (2013)

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