Influence of the polyelectrolyte molecular weight on exponentially growing multilayer films in the linear regime

Alternated deposition of polyanions and polycations on a charged solid substrate leads to the buildup of polyelectrolyte multilayer (PEM) films. Two types of PEM films were reported in the literature: films whose thickness increases linearly and films whose thickness increases exponentially with the number of deposition steps. However, it was recently found that, for exponentially growing films, the exponential increase of the film thickness takes place only during the initially deposited pairs of layers and is then followed by a linear increase. In this study, we investigate the growth process of hyaluronic acid/poly(L-lysine) (HA/PLL) and poly(L-glutamic acid)/poly(allylamine) (PGA/PAH) films, two films whose growth is initially exponential, when the growth process enters the linear regime. We focus, in particular, on the influence of the molecular weight (Mw) of the polyelectrolytes. For both systems, we find that the film thickness increment per polyanion/polycation deposition step in the linear growth regime is fairly independent of the molecular weights of the polyelectrolytes. We also find that when the (HA/PLL)n films are constructed with low molecular weight PLL, these chains can diffuse into the entire film during each buildup cycle, even for very thick films, whereas the PLL diffusion of high molecular weight chains is restricted to the upper part of the film. Our results lead to refinement of the buildup mechanism model, introduced previously for the exponentially growing films, which is based on the existence of three zones over the entire film thickness. The mechanism no longer needs all the "in" and "out" diffusing polyanions or polycations to be involved in the buildup process to explain the linear growth regime but merely relies on the interaction between the polyelectrolytes with an upper zone of the film. This zone is constituted of polyanion/polycation complexes which are "loosely bound" and rich in the polyelectrolyte deposited during the former deposition step.     

Anomalous thickness evolution of multilayer films made from poly-L-lysine and mixtures of hyaluronic acid and polystyrene sulfonate

Using a mixture of polyanions or polycations offers a new way to control the properties of polyelectrolyte multilayer (PEM) films. The central issue of PEM films made from blended polyelectrolyte solutions is the relation between the properties of the blended architecture and the properties of the films made from each pure component. Two situations are possible: either (i) the properties of the blended films are intermediate between those corresponding to the single components or (ii) new effects may emerge leading, for instance, to improved mechanical properties. Situation (i) is expected when the chemical natures of both polyelectrolytes from the blended mixture are close, whereas situation (ii) is more probable when the polyelectrolytes from the blend are very different. In this study, we focus on the buildup of PEM films made by the alternate spray deposition of a polyanion blend [a mixture of polystyrene-4-sulfonate (PSS) and hyaluronic acid (HA) in different mass fractions] and a polycation solution of poly-L-lysine (PLL). Whereas (HA-PLL) films exhibit a strong exponential growth with the number of deposition steps, the (PSS-PLL) system is only weakly exponential. We find that when the composition of the polyanion blend ranges from pure (HA-PLL) to pure (PSS-PLL), the films can always be constructed. However, the polyanion composition of the films is far from that of the polyanion solutions used for the buildup. One observes a strong preference for the incorporation of PSS over HA into the films. Moreover, the most striking feature is that the film thickness does not evolve monotonously with the polyanion solution composition but passes through a sharp minimum for a polyanion solution containing 90-95% HA. A possible mechanism for this peculiar finding is proposed.     

Composite films of polycations and TiO2 nanoparticles with photoinduced superhydrophilicity

We apply herein the reactive layer-by-layer (LBL) spray deposition of a polycation (polyethyleneimine, PEI) and a water soluble initiator of titanium dioxide [Ti(IV) bis(ammoniumlactato)dihydroxide, TiBisLac] to produce thin hybrid films containing PEI and nearly monodisperse TiO(2) anatase nanoparticles. The thickness of these coatings can be finely adjusted by either changing the number of deposition steps or the TiBisLac concentration. These films display intense absorption in the UV range and nearly full transparency above 365 nm and they also display photoinduced superhydrophilicity. These coatings can be produced either by reactive LBL spray deposition or reactive LBL dipping and may offer a wide range of applications from biology, as antibacterial coatings, to photoactive materials.     

Dynamics of poly(L-lysine) in hyaluronic acid/poly(L-lysine) multilayer films studied by fluorescence recovery after pattern photobleaching

Poly( L-lysine) (PLL)/hyaluronic acid (HA) multilayers are films whose thickness increases exponentially with the number of deposition steps. Such a growth process was attributed to the diffusion, in and out of the whole film, of at least one of the polyelectrolytes constituting the film. In the case of PLL/HA, PLL is known to be the diffusing species. In order to better understand the growth mechanism of such films, it is of primary importance to well characterize the diffusion process of the polyelectrolytes in the multilayer. This process is studied here by fluorescence recovery after pattern photobleaching. We show that the diffusion behavior is different when we consider either PLL chains that are deposited on top of the film or PLL chains embedded in the film, even below only one HA layer. For chains that are embedded, we find two populations: a mobile one with a diffusion coefficient, D, of the order of 0.1 microm(2) x s(-1) and a population that appears immobile ( D < 0.001 microm(2) x s(-1)). For chains deposited on top of the multilayer, a third population appears which is rapidly diffusing ( D congruent with 1 microm(2) x s(-1)). These results confirm the validity of the model generally accepted for the exponential growth process and in particular the existence of up to three subgroups of PLL chains from the point of view of their diffusion coefficient.     

Bioactive Seed Layer for Surface‐Confined Self‐Assembly of Peptides

The design and control of molecular systems that self‐assemble spontaneously and exclusively at or near an interface represents a real scientific challenge. We present here a new concept, an active seed layer that allows to overcome this challenge. It is based on enzyme‐assisted self‐assembly. An enzyme, alkaline phosphatase, which transforms an original peptide, Fmoc‐FFY(PO₄^2?), into an efficient gelation agent by dephosphorylation, is embedded in a polyelectrolyte multilayer and constitutes the “reaction motor”. A seed layer composed of a polyelectrolyte covalently modified by anchoring hydrogelator peptides constitutes the top of the multilayer. This layer is the nucleation site for the Fmoc‐FFY peptide self‐assembly. When such a film is brought in contact with a Fmoc‐FFY(PO₄^2?) solution, a nanofiber network starts to form almost instantaneously which extents up to several micrometers into the solution after several hours. We demonstrate that the active seed layer allows convenient control over the self‐assembly kinetics and the geometric features of the fiber network simply by changing its peptide density.     

Decomposition and crystallization in a zirconium-based bulk amorphous alloy: effects on nuclear probes

Using Mössbauer spectroscopy with ⁵⁷Fe probes and perturbed angular correlations with ion implanted ¹¹¹In–¹¹¹Cd nuclear tracers, we have investigated decomposition and crystallization in the bulk amorphous alloys and Zr_41.2Ti_13.8Cu_12.5Ni_8.5(⁵⁷Fe)_1.5Be_22.5 and Zr_41.2Ti_13.8Cu_12.5Ni₁₀Be_22.5, respectively. Mössbauer and angular correlation spectra measured during the course of isothermal annealings at typical decomposition temperatures reveal distributions of quadrupole splittings as expected for an amorphous state, but no clear signs of crystallinity. A comparison of both experiments including the measured hyperfine parameters suggests that the Fe and Cd nuclei probe subsets of local environments which are clearly distinct from each other. We conclude that the ⁵⁷Fe probe has a clear sensitivity to decomposition processes whereas the ¹¹¹In tracers are insensitive to these phenomena in the studied case.

     

Autonomous Growth of a Spatially Localized Supramolecular Hydrogel with Autocatalytic Ability

Autocatalysis and self‐assembly are key processes in developmental biology and are involved in the emergence of life. In the last decade both of these features were extensively investigated by chemists with the final goal to design synthetic living systems. Herein, we describe the autonomous growth of a self‐assembled soft material, that is, a supramolecular hydrogel, able to sustain its own formation through an autocatalytic mechanism that is not based on any template effect and emerges from a peptide (hydrogelator) self‐assembly. A domino sequence of events starts from an enzymatically triggered peptide generation followed by self‐assembly into catalytic nanofibers that induce and amplify their production over time, resulting in a 3D hydrogel network. A cascade is initiated by traces (10^?18 m ) of a trigger enzyme, which can be localized allowing for a spatial resolution of this autocatalytic buildup of hydrogel growth, an essential condition on the route towards further cell‐mimic designs.