Evaporation‐Induced Ordered Honeycomb Structures of Gold Nanoparticles at the Air/Water Interface

The breath figure method was used to prepare dodecanethiol‐capped gold nanoparticle macroporous structures with pore diameters from 1.7 to 3.5 μm on an air/water interface. A two‐step procedure is proposed for the fabrication of these macroporous structures, by forming a surfactant monolayer on water, and drop‐casting a gold nanoparticle dispersion in chloroform onto the surfactant monolayer. The self‐assembled films are easily transferred from the water surface onto different substrates and were characterized by TEM, SEM, and AFM. Ordered honeycomb structures with different pore arrays (perforated monolayer films, hexagonal networks and alveoli‐like porous films) were obtained. The change in morphology is concentration dependent, and deformed structures with elliptic honeycomb networks are also observed. In addition, honeycomb films using gold nanoparticles stabilized by a weakly bound ligand (dioctadecyldimethylammonium chloride) were formed by the same technique. These films have potential as substrates for surface‐enhanced Raman spectroscopy.     

界面上蜂窝状多孔薄膜的构建、性质和应用

综述了以Breath Figure(呼吸图案)法制备聚合物及纳米颗粒蜂窝状多孔结构的研究现状.当潮湿的气流吹到聚合物或纳米颗粒的有机溶液表面时,溶剂蒸发导致水微滴在液体表面冷凝重排成六角阵列结构.溶剂和水微滴蒸发完毕后,聚合物或纳米颗粒在基底上形成具有六角阵列的蜂窝状多孔结构.该技术是自组装领域的一大进展,在生物技术、组织工程、微图像技术、高端分离技术、光催化及医药等领域有望获得重要应用.本文系统阐述了规整蜂窝状孔结构材料的构建方法、构建材料、形成机理以及影响因素(包括湿度、浓度、气流方向和速度、溶剂、基底曲率等),评述了蜂窝状多孔薄膜的性质和应用,并对其在化学和材料科学领域的应用前景作了展望.     

Preparation and Functions of Hybrid Membranes with Rings of Ag NPs Anchored at the Edges of Highly Ordered Honeycomb‐Patterned Pores

We report a new, simple strategy to apply honeycomb films for the patterning of colloidal particles. By combination of a “bottom‐up” breath figure method and the electrochemical properties of the honeycomb films of ferrocenyl‐based oligomers, highly ordered hybrid membranes coated with ring‐like patterning of 0D‐ and 1D‐Ag nanoparticles (NPs) have been fabricated. One interesting phenomenon is that the nucleation and adsorption of Ag dots occurred preferentially at the edges of the micropores. The hybrid membranes exhibited richly electrochemical activities towards reduction of iodate and enhanced effectively catalytic reduction of organic dyes. We believe that this method can be used to decorate and/or assemble functional metal NPs such as Au, Pd, and Cu on honeycomb‐patterned materials for the further applications of photonics, sensors, and catalysis.     

Enhanced Photocurrent Generation of Graphene/Au@ZnO Honeycomb Film

A bio‐inspired graphene/Au@ZnO photoelectrode has been prepared via breath figure method, in which Au@ZnO nanospheres were uniformly distributed in the whole honeycomb film. The size of the honeycomb holes effects the light using efficiency. The honeycomb film with smaller holes in more ordered array shows better antireflective property. All the formed graphene/Au@ZnO honeycomb photoelectrodes show a fast, stable, and reversible response of photocurrent accompanied by each switch‐on and switch‐off event. Au@ZnO ‐modified graphene honeycomb film can combine the advantages of increased light harvesting provided by honeycomb structure, efficient charge separation from Au nanoparticles (NPs ), and efficient electron transfer provided by graphene. Au@ZnO ‐ modified graphene honeycomb film shows a two‐fold increase of photocurrent generation than ZnO ‐modified graphene honeycomb film and a three‐fold increase of photocurrent generation than Au@ZnO ‐modified graphene smooth film, respectively. The rational design and engineering of multi components with different functions in a hybrid bio‐inspired structure hold great promise for further efficient solar energy conversion devices.     

Preparation of mesostructured siloxane-organic hybrid films with ordered macropores by templated self-assembly

Novel hierarchically ordered siloxane-based hybrid films with well-defined macropores and mesostructured pore walls have been prepared by the self-assembly process using oligomeric siloxane precursors bearing alkyl chains (CnH2n+1Si(OSi(OMe)3)3) in the presence of polystyrene opal films as a template. Either a two-dimensional (2D) hexagonal structure or a lamellar structure was formed depending on the alkyl chain length of the precursors (n = 10 and 16, respectively). In both of the films, the mesostructures were oriented along the spherical surface of the template and were retained after removal of the template. Calcination of the 2D hexagonal hybrid produced ordered porous silica with both macro- and microporosities. The lamellar hybrid film exhibited a unique property of accommodating alkyl alcohols with an expansion of the interlayer spacings. These results provide a new concept for designing hierarchical hybrid materials that are potentially applicable as adsorbents, catalysts, sensors, and photonic crystals.     

Imprinted Photonic Hydrogels for the Size‐ and Shell‐Selective Recognition of Nanoparticles

Sensors based on responsive photonic hydrogels have recently attracted considerable attention for visual medical diagnostics, pharmaceutical bioassays, and environmental monitoring. However, the use of these promising materials for the detection of nanoparticles (NPs) has never been explored so far, although the sensing of nanoobjects is a rapidly evolving area of research. To address this issue, we have combined the concepts of inverse‐opal hydrogels and nanoparticle‐imprinted polymers. In this way, we could obtain a NP‐imprinted photonic hydrogel consisting of a three‐dimensional, highly ordered poly(methacrylic acid) macroporous array, in which nanocavities complementary to the target NPs, in this case colloidal quantum dots, are distributed. This novel type of NP‐imprinted photonic hydrogel sensor was shown to display high sensitivity and selectivity, thus opening new prospects for the development of equipment‐free and cost‐efficient sensing devices for NPs.     

利用呼吸图案法制备聚(苯乙烯-b-丙烯腈)有序多孔薄膜

以自制的聚(苯乙烯-b-丙烯腈)(PS-b-PAN)嵌段共聚物为成膜材料, 采用呼吸图案法制备了有序多孔薄膜, 采用扫描电子显微镜(SEM)对薄膜形貌进行了分析, 研究了聚合物浓度、溶剂种类及共聚物结构对薄膜结构的影响. 结果表明, 薄膜表层为多孔结构, 且孔为圆形、以六方阵列形式排列; 薄膜表层下面是蜂窝状结构.以三氯甲烷(CHCl₃)为溶剂时, 在较高浓度下制备的薄膜表层孔间距较大, 蜂窝结构尺寸较小, 且形成了多层结构. 与CHCl₃为溶剂时相比, 挥发速度较快的二硫化碳(CS₂)作溶剂时制备的多孔薄膜有序性较好, 薄膜表层孔径和孔间距均较大, 蜂窝结构尺寸较小. 以没有PAN链段的聚苯乙烯大分子引发剂(PS-Cl)为成膜材料时, 制备的薄膜表层没有形成多孔结构, 而是形成了窝状结构. 同时, 通过对薄膜表层晕的研究证明了多孔薄膜表层缺陷是由水滴处于液膜下较深的位置造成的.     

Tunable morphology of 2D honeycomb-patterned films and the hydrophobicity of a ferrocenyl-based oligomer

Honeycomb-patterned polymer films with tunable pore size and regularity of ordered two- or three-dimensional hexagonal arrays have met with widespread interest in recent years in different areas, for instance as separation and superhydrophobic materials. Herein, 2D honeycomb-patterned films of amphiphilic ferrocenyl-based oligomer with cholesterol as side chains were prepared by the breath-figure method on solid surfaces and their surface-wetting behavior were tested. These films can be simply prepared by spreading a mixture of polymer and organic solvents on a solid surface under moist airflow and at an air/water interface without any extra moist airflow. An ordered 2D hexagonal array of pores with monodisperse size distribution can be obtained over a large area by changing various influencing factors, including humidity, wet volume, concentration, selective solvent, and spreading method, which provides a facile route to regulate the morphology of patterned porous films. The surface-wetting behavior indicates that a higher hydrophobicity of the ferrocenyl-based oligomer honeycomb films can be obtained by modulating the pore size and regularity. It is expected that this could promote the potential application of ordered porous polymer films in hydrophobic materials and biochemistry.     

聚苯乙烯-嵌段-聚丁二烯有序多孔膜在可收缩膜上的形变研究和光学性质

利用溶剂散逸自组装法在潮湿的条件下,制备了聚苯乙烯-聚丁二烯嵌段聚合物（PS-b-PB）有序多孔膜。 利用聚乙烯可收缩膜将PS-b-PB多孔膜进行两次收缩,形成小孔径的有序多孔膜。 通过收缩,膜上的孔由圆形变为长方形或者梭形,孔的尺寸从微米级收缩至亚微米级。 利用扫描电子显微镜对膜收缩过程中2种形状产生的机理进行了研究。 结果表明,PS-b-PB结合了聚苯乙烯（PS）和聚丁二烯（PB）两个均聚物的优点,收缩后仍然保持膜结构的平整性,从而将不可见的热场变化转变为可见的光学变化。     

基于静态呼吸图技术的图案化方法

对呼吸图技术制备二维有序多孔结构的研究进展进行了综合评述, 并重点介绍了本课题组发展的静态呼吸图技术. 利用静态呼吸图法, 可制备高度有序的聚合物、聚合物/无机物微孔膜. 这些有序的结构可以直接应用于光掩膜. 进一步, 多孔聚合物膜可以被紫外光交联和改性. 表面改性的多孔聚合物膜可以用于细胞支架. 而交联的聚合物/无机物前驱体微孔膜可以用来制备无机纳米材料阵列. 结果表明, 静态呼吸图技术是一种简单、高效的对聚合物、聚合物/无机物薄膜进行图案化的通用方法,并展示了图案化薄膜广阔的功能化前景.     

Recent advances in honeycomb-structured porous polymer films prepared via breath figures

Since its introduction in 1994, the preparation of ordered porous polymer films by the breath figure (BF) method has received a considerable interest. The so-called “honeycomb” (HC) films exhibit a hexagonal array of micrometric pores obtained by water droplet condensation during the fast solvent evaporation performed under a humid flow. The main focus of this feature article is to describe the recent advances in the design of honeycomb polymer films by the BF process. We first review the recent studies related to the honeycomb film formation through the exploration of different parameters such as the relative humidity, the polymer concentration, the drying rate, the substrate or the role of interfacial tension. The influence of the architecture and microstructure of the polymer is examined through examples. In this contribution, a special attention is given to the recent articles focused on the preparation of elaborate functional honeycomb-structured polymer films obtained via the simple BF method. In this context, we review the preparation of hierarchical HC films showing either sub- or super-structure, the formation of hybrid HC films by self-assembly of nanoparticles or in situ generation of the inorganic matter, the fluorescence in HC films introduced either by a fluorescent polymer or by fluorescent chemical groups, the elaboration of biomaterials from HC films decorated by glycopolymer and/or showing sensing ability and finally the design of functional polymeric surfaces with either stimuli-responsive or superhydrophobic properties.     

Effects of concave and convex substrate curvature on cell mechanics and the cytoskeleton

In order to understand how cells respond to concave and convex subcellular surface structures,colloidal crystal array and honeycomb-structured surfaces composed of highly ordered hexagonal units with completely inverse curvature were fabricated via facile self-assembly and breath figure approaches, respectively.The influence of hexagonal surface curvature on cell fate was subsequently investigated. Cells underwent more extensive spreading on the convex colloidal crystal array surface,while adhesive forces were higher on the concave honeycomb surface.The behaviors of cells on the different surfaces were investigated by comparing cell morphology,cellular adhesive force and cytoskeleton structure.The results revealed comprehensive differences in cell behavior between those on concave honeycomb surfaces and convex colloidal crystal arrays.     

Breath Figure Arrays: Unconventional Fabrications,Functionalizations, and Applications

A breath figure (BF) is the water droplet array that forms when moisture comes in contact with a cold substrate. This water droplet array has been widely utilized in the past two decades as a versatile soft template for the fabrication of polymeric porous films. Accordingly, the ordered pores on the polymer films formed with such a method are named a breath figure array (BFA).The BF templating technique is undergoing rapid development. Several unconventional BF processes have been established to prepare porous films with unique morphologies or primary materials, and various newly developed functionalization techniques have significantly improved the performance of polymeric films with BFA, leading to novel applications, including templates, biosensors, and separation membranes. These recent achievements will be described in this Minireview.     

Self‐Organization of Honeycomb‐like Porous TiO2 Films by means of the Breath‐Figure Method for Surface Modification of Titanium Implants

This study describes a facile breath‐figure method for the preparation of honeycomb‐like porous TiO₂ films with an organometallic small‐molecule precursor. Multiple characterization techniques have been used to investigate the porous films and a mechanism for the formation process of porous TiO₂ films through the breath‐figure method is proposed. The pore size of the TiO₂ films could be modulated by varying the experimental parameters, such as the concentration of titanium n‐butoxide (TBT) solution, the content of cosolvent, and the air flow rate. In vitro cell‐culture experiments indicate that NIH 3T3 fibroblast cells seeded on the honeycomb‐like porous TiO₂ films show good adhesion, spreading, and proliferation behaviors, which suggests that honeycomb‐like porous TiO₂ films are an attractive biomaterial for surface modification of titanium and its alloys implants in tissue engineering to enhance their biocompatibility and bioactivity.     

Controllable Synthesis of Inverse Opal TiO2‐x Photonic Crystals and Their Photoelectric Properties

In this study, inverse opal TiO_2‐x photonic crystals (IO‐TiO_2‐x) have been successfully synthesized by a two‐step calcination. The whole synthesis is safe and feasible. Additionly, the reduction degree and the structure of IO‐TiO_2‐x can be precisely controlled. A series of IO‐TiO_2‐x samples with different reduction degree were prepared and characterized. The TEM images show that the obtained samples possess a 3D‐ordered macroporous inverse opal structure. The reduced Ti atoms/oxygen vacancies were confirmed by Raman and XPS spectroscopy. All IO‐TiO_2‐x samples showed better photoelectric properties than those of common TiO₂ which indicates their great potential to be applied to photoelectric fields. The improvement of photoelectric properties is attributed to the efficient electron‐hole separation efficiency induced by moderately reduced Ti atoms/oxygen vacancies. Meanwhile, the 3D‐ordered macroporous inverse opal structure and the band gap are regulated to “capture” more solar energy. This new approach is proven to be a meaningful method to synthesize high‐performance TiO₂ materials.     

Fabrication of size-tunable gold nanoparticles array with nanosphere lithography, reactive ion etching, and thermal annealing

Two-dimensional ordered arrays of gold (Au) nanoparticles were fabricated using two different variants of the nanosphere lithography technique. First, ordered arrays of polystyrene nanospheres on Si substrate were used as deposition masks through which gold films were deposited by electron beam evaporation. After the removal of the nanospheres, an array of triangular Au nanodisks was left on the Si substrate. After thermal annealing at increasing temperature, systematic shape transition of the nanostructures from original triangular Au nanodisks to rounded nanoparticles was observed. This approach allows us to systematically vary the size and morphology of the particles. In the second and novel technique, we made use of reactive ion etching to simultaneously reduce the dimension of the masking nanospheres and create arrays of nanopores on the substrate prior to the deposition of the Au films. These samples were subsequently annealed, which resulted in size-tunable and ordered Au nanoparticle arrays with the nanoparticles nested in the nanopores of the templated substrate. With the nanoparticles anchored in the nanopores, the substrate could be useful as a template for growth of other nanomaterials.     

The influence of casting parameters on the surface morphology of PS‐b‐P4VP honeycomb films

The “breath figures” method provides an efficient and cost‐effective method to produce highly ordered honeycomb patterns in polymeric films at micrometer and sub‐micrometer dimensions. The size and regularity of the pores can be adjusted through a series of physical and chemical parameters. In this study, amphiphilic diblock copolymers, polystyrene‐block‐poly(4‐vinyl pyridine) (PS‐b‐P4VP) with different lengths of P4VP, were synthesized through Reversible Addition‐Fragmentation Chain Transfer polymerization. The honeycomb‐patterned films were prepared from these well‐defined polymers through the dynamic breath figures method. A series of physical parameters including solution concentration, flow rate, humidity of the flow, and the humidity of the casting environment, were delicately adjusted to systematically investigate their effects on the morphology of the films. These studies identified four key factors which were found to influence the formation of the pattern. No obvious effect was found on the pore size by changing the length of P4VP block. The result provides clear direction on the fabrication of PS‐b‐P4VP honeycomb‐patterned films and more broadly contributes a deeper understanding of the processes involved in the formation of honeycomb patterns. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016 , 54, 3721–3732     

Orientation control in nanoparticle filled block copolymer cold zone annealed films

Nanoparticles provide an attractive route to modifying polymer thin film properties, yet controlling the dispersion and morphology of functionalized nanoparticle filled films is often difficult. Block copolymers can provide an ideal template for directed assembly of nanoparticles under controlled nanoparticle‐polymer interactions. Previously we observed that neat films of cylinder forming poly(styrene‐b‐methyl methacrylate) PS‐b‐PMMA block copolymer (c‐BCP) orient vertically with dynamic sharp thermal cold zone annealing (CZA‐S) over wide range of CZA‐S speed (0.1–10) μm/s. Here, we introduce a low concentration (1–5 wt %) of nanoparticles of phenolic group functionalized CdS (fCdS‐NP), to PMMA cylinder forming polystyrene‐b‐poly (methyl methacrylate) block copolymer (c‐BCP) films. Addition of the fCdS‐NP induces a vertical to horizontal orientation transition at low CZA‐S speed, V = 5 μm/s. The orientation flip studies were analyzed using AFM and GISAXS. These results confirm generality of our previously observed orientation transition in c‐BCP under low speed CZA‐S with other nanoparticles (gold [Au‐NP], fulleropyrrolidine [NCPF‐NP]) in the same concentration range, but reveal new aspects not previously examined: (1) A novel observation of significant vertical order recovery from 5–10% vertical cylindrical fraction at V = 5 μm/s to 46–63% vertical cylindrical fraction occurring at high CZA‐S speed, V = 10 μm/s for the fCdS nanoparticle filled films. (2) We rule out the possibility that a nanoparticle wetting layer on the substrate is responsible for the vertical to horizontal flipping transition. (3) We demonstrate that the orientation flipping results can be achieved in a nanoparticle block copolymer system where the nanoparticles are apparently better‐dispersed within only one (matrix PS) domain unlike our previous nanoparticle system studied. We consider facile processing conditions to fabricate functionalized nanoparticles filled PS‐PMMA block copolymer films with controlled anisotropy, a useful strategy in the design of next generation electronic and photonic materials. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2015 , 53, 604–614     

Ordered honeycomb-structured gold nanoparticle films with changeable pore morphology: from circle to ellipse

Two-dimensionally ordered honeycomb structures have been prepared on dodecanethiol-capped gold nanoparticle films by blowing moist air across the surface of the nanoparticle solution. The pore morphology can be altered from circle to ellipse with tunable aspect ratios by carefully controlling the direction and velocity of airflow. The formation mechanisms of different surface morphologies have been discussed in terms of the surface and interfacial tension.     

Incorporation of surface-derivatized gold nanoparticles into electrochemically generated polymer films

Stable colloidal solutions of gold nanoparticles surface-derivatized with a thiol monolayer have been prepared using two-phase (water–nitrobenzene) reduction of AuCl₄⁻ by sodium borohydride in the presence of 2-mercapto-3-n-octylthiophene (MOT). This kind of surface-functionalized gold nanoparticles can be easily incorporated into the poly(3-octylthiophene) (POT) films on electrode in the process of electrochemical polymerization leading to POT–gold nanoparticle (POT–Au) composite films. Scanning probe microscopy (SPM) and X-ray photoelectric spectroscopy (XPS) have been employed to characterize the surface-derivatized particles and the resulting films. The method of incorporation of nanoparticles into polymer by surface-derivatization and in situ polymerization can also be employed to prepare many other polymer–nanoparticle compostie materials.