In a polymer brush, grafted chains adopt a remarkably stable arrangement, resulting in heightened thermal stability, i.e., increase in glass transition temperature even for moderate grafting densities. While this stability may be advantageous for developing a range of desirable properties, polymer brushes have yet to be thoroughly characterized on the basis of how their glassy state properties are governed by molecular packing. In this work, we aim to systematically study the overall and local properties of polymer brushes, such as the glass transition temperature and physical aging characteristics, as a function of brush thickness and grafting density. Complementary techniques for this analysis include ellipsometry, fluorescence spectroscopy, and fast-scanning calorimetry. Ultimately, this pursuit will not only inform our fundamental understanding of structure-property relationships in the thin film geometry but may also reveal new approaches to design highly stable polymer thin films.

Impact of polymer brush morphology on glassy state properties in thin films

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.