The translation of small molecule chemistries into efficient methodologies for polymer functionalization spans several decades, enabling critical advances in soft matter materials synthesis with tailored and adaptive property profiles. The present Perspective exploresbased on selected examples50 years of innovation in polymer functionalization chemistries. These span a diverse set of chemistries based on activated esters, thiol–ene/yne processes, nucleophilic systems based on isocyanates, reactions driven by the formation of imines and oximes, ring-opening processes, cycloadditions, andin a recent renaissancemulticomponent reactions. In addition, a wide variety of chain types and architectures have been modified based on the above chemistries, often with exquisite chemical control, highlighted by key examples. We conclude our journey through polymer functionalization with thein our viewmost critically required advances that have the potential to move from “science fiction” to “science fact”.

Colorful clusters: Silver nanoclusters consisting of only a few atoms exhibit large chemical-environment-responsive shifts of their optical absorption and emission bands, that is, large solvatochromism (see picture). The photophysical characteristics and electrochemiluminescence of the Ag clusters give them remarkable advantages over larger nanoparticles in applications such as molecular sensing.

Bioinspired poly(dopamine) (PDA) films are merged with antifouling poly(MeOEGMA) brushes utilizing a nitrile imine-mediated tetrazole-ene cycloaddition (NITEC)-based phototriggered surface encoding protocol. The antifouling brushes were photopatterned on PDA surfaces, leading cells to form confluent layers in the non-irradiated sections, while no adhesion occurred on the brushes resulting in a remarkably precise cell pattern. The presented strategy paves the way for the design of tailor-made patterned cell interfaces.

We report the functionalization of cross-linked poly(divinylbenzene) (pDVB) microspheres using both thiol-ene chemistry and azide-alkyne click reactions. The RAFT technique was carried out to synthesize SH-functionalized poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (pNIPAAm) and utilized to generate pNIPAAm surface-modified microspheres via thiol-ene modification. The accessible double bonds on the surface of the microspheres allow the direct coupling with thiol-end functionalized pNIPAAm. In a second approach, pDVB microspheres were grafted with poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA). For this purpose, the residual double bonds on the microspheres surface were used to attach azide groups via the thiol-ene approach of 1-azido-undecane-11-thiol. In a second step, alkyne endfunctionalized pHEMA was used to graft pHEMA to the azide-modified surface via click-chemistry (Huisgen 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition). The surface-sensitive characterization methods X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning-electron microscopy and FT-IR transmission spectroscopy were employed to characterize the successful surface modification of the microspheres. In addition, fluorescence microscopy confirms the presence of grafted pHEMA chains after labeling with Rhodamine B.

The establishment of advanced living/controlled polymerization protocols allows for engineering synthetic polymers in a precise fashion. Combining advanced living/controlled polymerization techniques with highly efficient coupling chemistries facilitates quantitative, modular, and orthogonal functionalization of synthetic polymer strands at their chain termini as well as side‐chain functionalization. The review highlights the current status of selected post‐functionalization techniques of polymers via orthogonal ligation chemistries, major characteristics of the specific transformation chemistry, as well as the characterization of the products.

Designing the reversible interactions of biopolymers remains a grand challenge for an integral mimicry of mechanically superior biological composites. Yet, they are the key to synergistic combinations of stiffness and toughness by providing sacrificial bonds with hidden length scales. To address this challenge, dynamic polymers were designed with low glass-transition temperature T(g) and bonded by quadruple hydrogen-bonding motifs, and subsequently assembled with high-aspect-ratio synthetic nanoclays to generate nacre-mimetic films. The high dynamics and self-healing of the polymers render transparent films with a near-perfectly aligned structure. Varying the polymer composition allows molecular control over the mechanical properties up to very stiff and very strong films (E≈45 GPa, σ(UTS)≈270 MPa). Stable crack propagation and multiple toughening mechanisms occur in situations of balanced dynamics, enabling synergistic combinations of stiffness and toughness. Excellent gas barrier properties complement the multifunctional property profile.

We introduce visible light induced dynamic covalent chemistry as a powerful reversible ligation tool based on a wavelength-dependent photon efficiency analysis (WPEA). We demonstrate by a monochromatic wavelength scan of the reversible dimerization of styrylpyrene at constant photon count that the system is most effective in its forward reaction at 435 nm, while the highest reverse reaction efficiency is observed at 330 nm. Critically, these optimum wavelengths are not accessible by inspection of the UV/vis spectra of the monomer and the dimer. Application of the identified reaction conditions enabled an entirely λ-orthogonal photoreversible polymer ligation using visible light, including with readily available light sources. The current study thus makes a [2 + 2] reaction system applicable in the critical visible light regime based on quantitative wavelength resolved data for applications in recodeable surface design in biological environments as well as reprogrammable materials systems.

In the present study, the two grafting techniques grafting-from - by activators regenerated by electron transfer atom transfer radical polymerization (ARGET ATRP) - and grafting-to - by copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuAAC) - were systematically compared, employing cellulose as a substrate. In order to obtain a meaningful comparison, it is crucial that the graft lengths of the polymers that are grafted from and to the substrates are essentially identical. Herein, this was achieved by utilizing the free polymer formed in parallel to the grafting-from reaction as the polymer for the grafting-to reaction. Four graft lengths were investigated, and the molar masses of the four free polymers (21 ≤ M(n) ≤ 100 kDa; 1.07 ≤ Đ(M) ≤ 1.26), i.e. the polymers subsequently employed in the grafting-to reaction, were shown to be in the same range as the molar masses of the polymers grafted from the surface (23 ≤ M(n) ≤ 87 kDa; 1.08 ≤ Đ(M) ≤ 1.31). The molecular weights of the chains grafted from the surface were established after cleavage from the cellulose substrates via size exclusion chromatography (SEC). High-resolution Fourier transform infrared microscopy (FT-IRM) was employed as an efficient tool to study the spatial distribution of the polymer content on the grafted substrates. In addition, the functionalized substrates were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), contact angle (CA) measurements, and field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). For cellulose substrates modified via the grafting-from approach, the content of polymer on the surfaces increased with increasing graft length, confirming the possibility to tailor not only the length of the polymer grafts but also the polymeric content on the surface. In comparison, for the grafting-to reaction, the grafted content could not be controlled by varying the length of the preformed polymer: the polymer content was essentially the same for the four graft lengths. Consequently, the obtained results, when employing cellulose as a substrate and under these conditions, suggest that the grafting-from approach is superior to the grafting-to technique with respect to controlling the distribution of the polymeric content on the surface.