Brush polymers are interesting model systems in the study of polymer self-assembly, and new synthetic methods to produce these materials promise use in various avenues of materials science. High molecular weight brush block copolymers with quantitative grafting density are efficiently accessed through sequential ruthenium-mediated ring opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP), and can self-assemble to photonic crystals. New methods have been developed which allow for facile introduction of commodity polymer building blocks to these advanced structures through macromonomers with dispersities lower than 1.10. The self-assembly of these brush block copolymers in thin films is explored in context of their optical and mechanical properties. Expansion of the available building blocks which compose polymer-based photonic crystals bolsters a modular synthetic strategy to access these nanostructured materials and control their material properties for tailored applications.<br/>

New strategies for brush block copolymer synthesis and their application in polymer-based photonic crystals<i> </i>

255th National Meeting (2018)

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