Encapsulation of magnetic self-assembled systems in thermoreversible gels

We describe two different ways of encapsulating within the fibrils of thermoreversible polymer gels the filaments of a supermolecular polymer formed by self-assembly of a bicopper complex. Heterogeneous nucleation is brought about with gels made from isotactic poly(styrene) while compound formation occurs with gels made from poly(hexyl isocyanate). These ways depend upon the interaction between the wings of the supermolecular polymer and the side groups of the polymer. In all cases, the filaments retain their 1-D structure. Preliminary results from magnetic susceptibility measurements show a striking difference between the pure and the encapsulated supermolecular polymer.