Nanostructured Thin Films via Self-Assembly of Block Copolymers

Abstract

Thin films of incompatible block copolymers self‐assemble into highly regular supramolecular structures with characteristic dimensions in the 10–100 nm regime. There is increasing interest in controlling the resulting structures and utilizing them, for instance in the area of nanotechnology. So far, research has concentrated mainly on exploiting the melt structure of diblock copolymers. Recent work on block copolymer solutions and more complex co‐ and terpolymer architectures has revealed a rich variety of novel thin‐film structures, some of which exhibit high complexity and order. In addition, by use of mean field dynamic density functional theory along with well‐controlled experiments, the fundamentals of thin film structure formation have been elucidated. We highlight some aspects of these studies and point to future directions in this lively field of materials science.

Tuning the Dimensions and Periodicities of Nanostructures Starting from the Same Polystyrene‐block‐poly(2‐vinylpyridine) Diblock Copolymer

“…Using self-assembly of macromolecules to form surface nanopatterns is emerging as a promising and flexible technique. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] The key advantage of such "bottom-up" processes is that large surface areas can be treated quickly and at low cost. Block copolymers are frequently used, since they readily self-assemble to form a rich variety of nanoscale periodic patterns.…”

Thin-film morphologies of block copolymers with nanoparticles

“…It is of high importance to understand these influences because laterally structured polymer surfaces may serve as template for the controlled assembly of nanoparticles (Nandan et al, 2011). In some BCP systems, for film thicknesses f well below d bulk (the "repeat distance", which is controlled by the molar mass), standing morphologies were observed in appropriate molar ratios, while film thicknesses around and larger d bulk resulted in structures arranged parallel to the surface (Fasolka and Mayes, 2001;Krausch and Magerle, 2002). In order to alter and/or improve the morphology -also in presence of different nanoparticles (NP, for example, silica, gold, silver, magnetite) -often solvent vapour annealing (SVA) was applied (Jehnichen et al, 2010;Horechyy et al, 2014).…”

Supramolecular Assemblies from Poly(styrene)-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine) Diblock Copolymers Mixed with 6-Hydroxy-2-naphthoic Acid

“…Block copolymers are known to self-assemble into structures of nanoscopic length scale, either in a selective solvent for one of the blocks (micellar structures) or in bulk and continue to remain a prominent research topic [1][2][3][4][5][6][7]. In the typical application of block copolymers as thin films, the structural behavior could be more complicated compared to the bulk, due to their interactions with the underlying substrate.…”