Crystallization of Molecular Brushes with Block Copolymer Side Chains

Abstract

A series of three cylindrical molecular brushes with poly(e-caprolactone)-b-poly(n-butyl acrylate) side chains were investigated with regard to the effect of the intramolecular confinement on the crystallization behavior of the PCL core block. While the length of the PCL block was maintained (nPCL = 50), the degree of polymerization of the PBA corona block, prepared by atom transfer radical polymerization, was varied from nPBA = 0 (PCL brush) to nPBA = 52 and 163. The crystallization behavior of the studied polymers was shown to be different in thin films and bulk samples. In thin films, the brushlike macromolecules were fully extended and remained segregated due to the steric repulsion of the adsorbed PBA corona. Under the constraint of the backbone extension, crystallization of the PCL core led to formation of a characteristic spinelike morphology. In bulk samples, the core−shell confinement did not prohibit breakout crystallization, leading to the formation of a spherulitic morphology similar to linear...