Tailored multifunctional micellar brushes via crystallization-driven growth from a surface

We describe a platform for surface functionalization that involves the fabrication of cylindrical micellar brushes on a silicon wafer through seeded growth of crystallizable block copolymers at the termini of immobilized, surface-confined crystallite seeds. The density, length, and coronal chemistry of the micellar brushes can be precisely tuned, and post-growth decoration with nanoparticles enables applications in catalysis and antibacterial surface modification. The micellar brushes can also be grown on ultrathin two-dimensional materials such as graphene oxide nanosheets and further assembled into a membrane for the separation of oil-in-water emulsions and gold nanoparticles.

Source: ScienceNOW - November 27, 2019 Category: Science Authors: Cai, J., Li, C., Kong, N., Lu, Y., Lin, G., Wang, X., Yao, Y., Manners, I., Qiu, H. Tags: Materials Science reports Source Type: news