Photocrosslinking of thin films of temperature‐sensitive polymers

The use of polymeric materials with temperature‐dependent degrees of swelling (especially polymers that exhibit lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behaviour in aqueous solutions) in microsystems requires the preparation and patterning of layers in the µm range. Copolymers based on N‐isopropylacrylamide were modi‐fied with a stilbazolium salt chromophore to yield photocrosslinkable temperature‐sensitive polymers. The chromophore and the polymers were characterized by UV, IR, 1H‐NMR (nuclear magnetic resonance) and 13C‐NMR spectra. The resulting polymers showed LCST behaviour, which was measured by differential scanning calorimetry. The photocrosslinking properties were studied by UV irradiation of the thin films and measurement of the changes in the UV absorption spectra. By irradiation of thin films through a mask it was possible to obtain patterned networks in the µm range (20 µm space width and ≥50 µm line width). The resulting patterned networks showed temperature‐dependent swelling properties in aqueous media. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Light-sensitive chalcone-containing poly(amido imides)

Soluble poly(amido imides) and copoly(amido imides) containing main-and side-chain chromophore chalcone groups have been synthesized. Thermo-and photocrosslinking of polymer chains in films under UV irradiation have been studied. The mechanical properties, dielectric behavior, and photosensitivity and photoconductivity characteristics of the polymers have been investigated.     

Photochemical modification of the lower critical solution temperature of cinnamoylated poly(N‐2‐hydroxypropylmethacrylamide) in water

Partial modification of the nonionic polymer poly(N‐2‐hydroxy‐propylmethacrylamide) by cinnamate produces stimuli‐responsive copolymers. The hydrophobic character of the cinnamate chromophore induces not only a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) in water, but renders additionally the polymers photoresponsive. For moderate cinnamate contents of 9 mol‐%, the photoisomerization of the trans‐cinnamate to cis‐cinnamate groups allows to switch the LCST by irradiation, whereas for higher cinnamate contents of 21 mol‐%, irradiation leads to intra‐ and intermolecular photocrosslinking.     

Photocrosslinkable second-order nonlinear optical polymers synthesized by cationic copolymerization

Photocrosslinkable second-order nonlinear optical (NLO) polymers were synthesized from cationic copolymerization of a vinyl ether monomer bearing 4′-nitrobiphenyl-4-oxy group as the NLO chromophore with a vinyl ether monomer bearing cinnamoyl group as the photoreactive moiety. To obtain a suitable poling method involving photocrosslinking, which is capable of inducing a higher and more stable second-order nonlinear coefficient, d₃₃, for NLO polymer films, some poling procedures were investigated. An optimized poling method was as follows. Ultraviolet (UV) irradiation is performed for 90 sec during poling at 50°C for 20 min, followed by poling at 150°C for 20 min. By using this poling method NLO polymer films exhibited a higher and considerably stable d₃₃ value at room temperature, even though they had rather lower glass transition temperatures before photocrosslinking. Some photocrosslinking mechanism for NLO polymers investigated here were considered.     

Brillouin scattering studies of polymeric nanostructures *

For a range of applications, polymers are now being patterned into nanometer‐sized features. In these applications, the robust mechanical properties of the nanostructures are critical for performance and stability. Brillouin light scattering is presented as a nondestructive, noncontact tool used to quantify the elastic constants in such nanostructures. We demonstrate this through a series of thin films and parallel ridges and spacings (gratings) with ridge widths ranging from 180 to 80 nm. For the set of films and structures presented here, the room‐temperature elastic moduli did not change with decreasing film thickness or grating ridge width, and this implied that one‐dimensional and two‐dimensional confinement‐induced changes of the mechanical properties were not significant down to feature sizes of 80 nm. Additionally, Brillouin spectra of submicrometer gratings revealed new modes not present in the spectra of thin films. The origin of these new modes remains unclear. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 1106–1113, 2004     

Nonlinear optical properties of some side chain copolymers based on benzoxazole containing chromophores

Acrylate‐methylmethacrylate copolymers have been synthesized for nonlinear optical applications. Acrylate monomer units are characterized by the presence in the side chain of phenylbenzoxazole groups containing electron donor‐electron acceptor substituents. The phase behavior of all polymers has been investigated by DSC, X‐ray diffraction and polarizing microscopy: two of them exhibit liquid crystalline behavior of smectic type. For four polymers, nonlinear optical properties have been examined by second harmonic generation measurements on thin films (∼ 1 μm thickness) electrically poled by corona discharge. Second order susceptibility coefficients d₃₃ and average relaxation times 〈τ〉, relative to the time stability of the chromophore poling, have been measured. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 603–608, 1999     

Preparation and characterisation of thermoresponsive poly[(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylamide-co-(hydroxyethyl acrylate)] microspheres as a matrix for the pulsed release of drugs

Despite the large number of publications and patents concerning pH/thermoresponsive polymers, few data are available concerning the preparation of thermoresponsive cross-linked microspheres from preformed polymers. Therefore, N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylamide-co-(2-hydroxyethyl acrylate) copolymers were obtained as a new thermoresponsive material with a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) around 36 degrees C, in phosphate buffer at pH 7.4, and with a cross-linkable OH group in their structure. The LCST value was determined both by UV spectroscopy and microcalorimetric analysis. These copolymers were solubilised in acidified aqueous solution below their LCST, dispersed in mineral oil, and transformed into stable microspheres by cross-linking with glutaraldehyde. The thermoresponsive microspheres were characterised by optical and scanning electron microscopy, degree of swelling, and water retention. The pore dimensions of the microspheres and the retention volumes of some drugs and typical compounds were evaluated at different temperatures by liquid chromatography. Indomethacin, as a model drug, was included in the microspheres by the solvent evaporation method. Finally, the influence of temperature and of temperature cycling on drug release was investigated.     

Thermorheological and glass transition properties of PNIPA/PVP and PNIPA/Carbopol blends

The miscibility of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPA) with poly(vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) and a cross-linked poly(acrylic acid) (Carbopol^® 971P) was evaluated from the rheological data of aqueous dispersions and the temperature of glass transitions of films made of binary mixtures. PNIPA has a low critical solubility temperature (LCST) of about 33°C, below which 1% dispersion behaves as a viscous system. At temperatures above LCST, the hydrophobic interactions among the isopropyl groups initially provide transient networks of greater elasticity. The LCST of PNIPA as well as its T _g (144°C, estimated by DSC and MTDSC of films) were not modified by the presence of PVP. The immiscibility of PNIPA and PVP was confirmed by the absence of interaction between both polymers as shown by FTIR analysis of the films. In contrast, PNIPA and carbopol were miscible and the behaviour of their mixtures differed significantly from that of the parent polymers; i.e. a strong synergistic effect on the viscoelasticity of the dispersions was observed below the LCST. As temperature increased, the blends showed a decrease in the loss and storage moduli, especially those with greater PNIPA proportions. The fall was smoother as the PNIPA proportion decreased. This behaviour may be explained as the result of the balance between PNIPA/carbopol hydrogen bonding interactions (as shown in the shift of C=O stretch in FTIR spectra) and PNIPA/PNIPA hydrophobic interactions. The T _g values of the films of the blends showed a positive deviation from the additivity rule; the mixtures containing more than 1:1 amide:carboxylic acid groups have a notably high Tg (up to 181°C). This increase is related to the stiffness induced in the films by the PNIPA/carbopol interactions.     

Micropatterning of Sol-Gel Derived Thin Films Using Hydrophobic-Hydrophilic Patterned Surface

Formation process of convexly shaped oxide micropatterns using hydrophobic-hydrophilic patterned surface has been examined, and this technique was applied to several oxide thin films such as SnO₂, ZrO₂, TiO₂ and Al₂O₃. Hydrophobic-hydrophilic patterned surfaces were prepared on glass substrates by selective UV irradiation through a photomask on double-layered films of a very thin TiO₂ gel film as the underlayer and a hydrolyzed fluoroalkyltrimethoxysilane layer as the top layer. Precursor solutions were then spin-coated on the hydrophobic-hydrophilic patterns, and the coated substrates were dried at room temperature. The micropatterns of oxides were very difficult to be formed on the hydrophobic-hydrophilic patterned surfaces from metal-alkoxides as a precursor solution, but convexly shaped micropatterns were formed on the hydrophilic regions of the pattern when metal chlorides or oxychlorides were used as starting materials. This patterning technique potentially has a wide variety of applications such as fabrication of micro-optical components and finely patterned transparent electrodes.     

Fine Patterning of Transparent, Conductive SnO2 Thin Films by UV-Irradiation

Finely patterned transparent, conductive SnO₂ thin films have been prepared. UV-light from a high-pressure mercury lamp was irradiated through a mask on the precursor films prepared from SnCl₂ with acetyl acetone in the ambient atmosphere, and this irradiation led to the change of solubility of the films in alkaline solution. Patterns with a width of about 3 to 50 m and thickness of about 0.1 m were formed with a pitch of about 2 to 20 m. The resistivity of the films heat-treated at 500°C after UV irradiation was about 1 × 10^–2 cm, which was almost the same resisitivity for the films heat-treated at 500°C without UV irradiation.     

A Synthetic,Transiently Thermoresponsive Homopolymer with UCST Behaviour within a Physiologically Relevant Window

Interactive materials that can respond to a trigger by changing their morphology, but that can also gradually degrade into a fully soluble state, are attractive building blocks for the next generation of biomaterials. Herein, we design such transiently responsive polymers that exhibit UCST behaviour while gradually losing this property in response to a hydrolysis reaction in the polymer side chains. The polymers operate within a physiologically relevant window in terms of temperature, pH, and ionic strength. Whereas such behaviour has been reported earlier for LCST systems, it is at present unexplored for UCST polymers. Furthermore, we demonstrate that, in contrast to LCST polymers, in aqueous medium the UCST polymer forms a coacervate phase below the UCST, which can entrap a hydrophilic model protein, as well as a hydrophobic dye. Because of their non‐toxicity, we also provide in vivo proof of concept of the use of this coacervate as a protein depot, in view of sustained‐release applications.     

Polyelectrolytes in thin liquid films

The review addresses the influence of polyelectrolytes on the statics and dynamics of thin liquid films. Both, changes of interfacial and bulk properties, contribute to the overall behaviour of thin films formed from aqueous polyelectrolyte solutions. Therefore, the chapter is separated into two parts: polyelectrolytes at film interfaces and polymers in film bulk.     

Photocrosslinking of elastomer systems. II. Ultraviolet light-induced reactions in an EPDM modified by grafting of benzoin derivatives

Photocrosslinking experiments were performed on elastomeric polymer films (EPDM) previously modified by grafting a photosensitive initiator (benzoin derivative) onto the macromolecular backbone. This modification was performed by a series of Friedel–Crafts reactions and the resulting materials were characterized by infrared (IR) spectroscopy in conjunction with model reactions. After ultraviolet (UV) irradiation the photocrosslinked samples were studied by IR spectroscopy in conjunction with the measurement of physical properties. It apperared that grafting the photosensitizer onto the elastomer considerably enhances the crosslinking reaction even with a limited quantity of grafted benzoin derivative. Moreover, the results obtained suggest that the structure of the resulting networks is strongly dependent on the crosslinking process used; that is, curing the elastomer with peroxide or UV irradiation either of a blend of elastomer and photosensitizer or of the same elastomer modified by grafting the chromophore.     

Patterning molecularly thin films of polymers—new methods for photolithographic structuring of surfaces

Three novel photolithographic processes for patterning of molecularly thin polymer films are described. The polymer monolayers are prepared by immobilization of initiator molecules to surfaces of solid substrates followed by thermally or photochemically activated radical chain polymerization. Thus polymer chains which are covalently linked to the surfaces of the substrates are obtained. The films can be patterned using appropriate masks and deep or near UV irradiation before, during or after polymer formation. The procedures described in this paper allow the chemical tailoring of surfaces with high spatial resolution. Step-and-repeat procedures, which take advantage of the covalent linking of the polymers to the surfaces, permit the preparation of multifunctional polymer patterns.     

A new patterning method using photocatalytic lithography and selective atomic layer deposition

We report a new patterning method using photocatalytic lithography of alkylsiloxane self-assembled monolayers and selective atomic layer deposition of thin films. The photocatalytic lithography is based on the fact that the decomposition rate of the alkylsiloxane monolayers in contact with TiO2 is much faster than that with SiO2 under UV irradiation in air. The photocatalytic lithography, using a quartz plate coated with patterned TiO2 thin films, was done to prepare patterned monolayers of the alkylsiloxane on Si substrates. A ZrO2 thin film was selectively deposited onto the monolayer-patterned Si substrate by atomic layer deposition.     

Fabrication and characterization of poly(vinyl alcohol)/chitosan hydrogel thin films via UV irradiation

A series of poly(vinyl alcohol)/chitosan (PVA/CTS) hydrogel thin films were prepared via ultraviolet (UV) irradiation, with acrylic acid (AA) monomer added as a crosslinker without the addition of any other photo-initiator. The swelling behaviors, intermolecular chemical bonds, molecular structures, thermal behaviors, degrees of crystallinity, morphologies of the surfaces and internal structure, and their relationship to the AA content were characterized using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and its chemical crosslinks formed in hydrogel films via free-radical reactions were confirmed using FTIR and DSC analyses. The XRD patterns indicated that the degree of crystallinity of the hydrogel films decreased as the PAA content was increased. SEM micrographs showed that a uniform interconnected pore structure was formed through the entire hydrogel structure, and a gradient in the crosslinking density through the film thickness was observed to result from extended irradiation times. The swelling behaviors revealed that the formation of PAA and its crosslinking in the hydrogel thin films improved the pH stability and controlled the degree of swelling while retaining a high swelling rate. The successful formation of chemical crosslinking without any specific photo-initiator improves the natural characteristics of CTS and PVA and imparts the resulting PVA/CTS hydrogel thin films with properties that make them very promising in biomedical applications.     

Surface-assisted photoalignment of discotic liquid crystals by nonpolarized light irradiation of photo-cross-linkable polymer thin films

In this article, we describe the surface-assisted photoalignment of discotic liquid crystals (DLCs) on thin films of photo-cross-linkable polymers with cinnamoyl moieties as the side chains. Oblique irradiation of the polymer thin films with nonpolarized UV light at 313 nm brought about inclined orientation of the cinnamoyl residues as a result of their direction-selective photoisomerization and photodimerization. The DLC molecules on the photoirradiated polymer films were aligned in a tilted hybrid manner. This means that the DLC directors are continuously altered from the substrate to the DLC film surface so as to minimize the elastic free energy. Interestingly, we found that the tilted direction of aligned DLC molecules is clearly influenced by the chemical structures of the cinnamate-containing polymers. When a poly(vinyl cinnamate) thin film was obliquely exposed to nonpolarized UV light, the DLCs were inclined to the direction opposite to the UV light propagation. In a keen contrast, the thin film of poly(methacrylate)s tethering cinnamoyl groups, which was obliquely exposed to nonpolarized UV light in advance, provided the tilting DLC direction in parallel with the light propagation. The results were supported by tilted orientation of calamitic (rod-shaped) liquid crystal on the obliquely irradiated polymer films. Such photoalignment behavior of the DLCs can be rationalized by anchoring balance between intermolecular interaction of the DLC molecules with the photodimers of polymer films and those with the remaining E-isomers of cinnamoyl side chains at the film interface. The present technique of DLC photoalignment opens promising ways not only to understand anisotropic physical properties of DLCs, but also to design and fabricate novel nanodevices for photonics and electronics applications.     

Preparation of fast response superabsorbent hydrogels by radiation polymerization and crosslinking of N-isopropylacrylamide in solution

Macroporous temperature-responsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) hydrogels with high equilibrium swelling and fast response rates were obtained by a ⁶⁰Co γ- and electron beam (EB) irradiation of aqueous N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAAm) monomer solutions. The effect of irradiation temperatures, the dose, the addition of a pore-forming agent on the swelling ratio, and the kinetics of swelling and shrinking of the PNIPAAm gels was studied. The gels synthesized above the LCST exhibited the highest equilibrium swelling (300–400) and fastest response rate measured by minutes. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) pictures revealed that the gels synthesized above the LCST have larger pores than those prepared at temperatures below the LCST. The gels showed a reversible response to cyclical changes in temperature and might be used in a pulsed drug delivery device. The gels synthesized above the LCST exhibited the highest testosterone propionate release.     

A New Method of Photopatterning with LB Films Based on a Chemically Amplified Mechanism

IntroductionDeep-UV lithography is generally recognized asthe most promising lithographic technology, for the pro-duction of high-resolution devices. However, lithogra-phy requires high sensitivity, high resolution, and highresistance. To make this techno…     

Surface chemical and mechanical properties of plasma-polymerized N-isopropylacrylamide

Surface-immobilized poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) (pNIPAM) is currently used for a wide variety of biosensor and biomaterial applications. A thorough characterization of the surface properties of pNIPAM thin films will benefit those applications. In this work, we present analysis of a plasma-polymerized NIPAM (ppNIPAM) coating by multiple surface analytical techniques, including time-of-flight secondary-ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), contact angle measurement, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and sum frequency generation (SFG) vibrational spectroscopy. ToF-SIMS data show that the plasma-deposited NIPAM polymer on the substrate is cross-linked with a good retention of the monomer integrity. Contact angle results confirm the thermoresponsive nature of the film as observed by a change of surface wettability as a function of temperature. Topographic and force-distance curve measurements by AFM further demonstrate that the grafted film shrinks or swells depending on the temperature of the aqueous environment. A clear transition of the elastic modulus is observed at 31-32 degrees C. The change of the surface wettability and mechanical properties vs temperature are attributed to different conformations taken by the polymer, which is reflected on the outmost surface as distinct side chain groups orienting outward at different temperatures as measured by SFG. The results suggest that a ppNIPAM thin film on a substrate experiences similar mechanical and chemical changes to pNIPAM bulk polymers in solution. The SFG result provides evidence supporting the current theory of the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behavior of pNIPAM.