Reversible Thermally Responsive and Luminescent Coil-Rod-Coil Triblock Copolymers

• Published in: Macromolecular rapid communications. Vol. 28; no. 9; pp. 1003 - 1009
• Main Authors: Xiao, Xing, Fu, Ya-qin, Zhou, Jian-jun, Bo, Zhi-shan, Li, Lin, Chan, Chi-Ming
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim WILEY-VCH Verlag 02.05.2007; WILEY‐VCH Verlag; Wiley
• Subjects: Applied sciences; block copolymers; energy transfer; Exact sciences and technology; Organic polymers; Physical Sciences; Physicochemistry of polymers; poly(N-isopropylacrylamide); Polymer Science; Polymers with particular properties; Preparation, kinetics, thermodynamics, mechanism and catalysts; Science & Technology; temperature-responsive; block copolymers; BLOCK-COPOLYMERS; FRAGMENTATION CHAIN TRANSFER; temperature-responsive; energy transfer; RESONANCE ENERGY-TRANSFER; OLIGOFLUORENE; POLY(N-ISOPROPYLACRYLAMIDE) CHAINS; TRANSFER RADICAL POLYMERIZATION; RAFT POLYMERIZATION; CARBON NANOTUBES; poly(N-isopropylacrylamide); CONJUGATED POLYMERS; WATER; Hydrodynamic radius; Porphin; Temperature effect; Fluorescence; Excitation energy transfer; Acrylamide derivative copolymer; Luminescent material; Experimental study; Emission spectrum; Triblock copolymer; Free radical polymerization; Chain transfer; Preparation; Aqueous solution; Micellar solution; Fluorene derivative copolymer; Amphiphilic polymer; Conformational transition
• ISSN: 1022-1336; 1521-3927
• DOI: 10.1002/marc.200700038

A functional coil–rod–coil triblock copolymer containing a terfluorene unit as the rigid segment and poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) as the flexible block was successfully synthesized via reversible addition–fragmentation chain‐transfer (RAFT) polymerization using terfluorene‐based dithioester as the RAFT agent. The temperature‐responsive optical properties were investigated with the aid of dynamic light scattering and fluorescence techniques. Additionally, the relationship between the optical properties and the reversible phase transition of the doping system formed by blending the copolymer with tetraphenylporphine tetrasulfonic acid was studied. Above the lower critical solution temperature, the energy transfer efficiency decreased as a result of the globule–to–coil transition from PNIPAAm segments. The result indicates that these copolymers have a potential to be used as responsive fluorescent probes in facile detection of dye‐labeled biopolymers.