Hierarchic Structure Formation in Binary and Ternary Polymer Blends

The phase morphology of multi-component polymer blends is governed by the interfacial interactions of its components. We discuss here the domain morphology in thin films of model binary and ternary polymer blends containing polystyrene, poly(methyl metacrylate), and poly(2-vinylpyridine) (PS, PMMA, PVP). When sandwiched between two non-polar surfaces, characteristic lateral phase morphologies are observed after the film formation by spin-coating. We discuss here two techniques, by which hierarchical lateral structures in polymer films can be made. The first method makes use of two simultaneously occurring interfacial instabilities. The second technique employs the effect of a variation of the enthalpic interaction parameters in a ternary polymer mixture on its lateral polymer phase morphology.