Phase Transition and Phase Transformation in Block Copolymer Nanoparticles

• Published in: Macromolecular rapid communications. Vol. 31; no. 20; pp. 1773 - 1778
• Main Authors: Higuchi, Takeshi, Motoyoshi, Kiwamu, Sugimori, Hidekazu, Jinnai, Hiroshi, Yabu, Hiroshi, Shimomura, Masatsugu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim WILEY-VCH Verlag 18.10.2010; WILEY‐VCH Verlag; Wiley
• Subjects: Annealing; Applied sciences; block copolymer; Block copolymers; Exact sciences and technology; Lamellar structure; microphase separation structure; Nanocomposites; Nanomaterials; nanoparticle; Nanoparticles; Nanostructure; Organic polymers; phase transformation; Phase transformations; phase transition; Physicochemistry of polymers; Properties and characterization; Structure, morphology and analysis; Annealing; Nanoparticle; Order disorder transformation; Experimental study; Phase transitions; microphase separation structure; block copolymer; Monodispersed polymer; Domain structure; Morphology; Isoprene copolymer; phase transformation; Diblock copolymer; phase transition; Styrene copolymer
• ISSN: 1022-1336; 1521-3927; 1521-3927
• DOI: 10.1002/marc.201000299

Block copolymer nanopaticles were prepared from the mixture solutions containing good/poor solvents by a simple evaporation process. The block copolymers formed disorder, unidirectionally stacked lamellar, and onion‐like structures in nanoparticles depending on preparation temperatures. Thermal annealing induced the disorder‐order phase transition and order‐order phase transformation in the block copolymer nanoparticles, even though the annealing temperature is lower than the of one polymer segment. The unusual thermal behaviors suggest that the glass transition temperature of the block copolymer is decreased by the effect of nanoparticle, whose surface areas are larger than their volumes. Block copolymer nanoparticles were prepared from the mixture solutions containing good/poor solvents by a simple evaporation process. Thermal annealing induced the disorder–order phase transition and order–order phase transformation in the block copolymer nanoparticles, even though the annealing temperature is lower than that of one polymer segment. The unusual thermal behaviors suggest that the glass transition temperature of the block copolymer is decreased by the effect of nanoparticle.