Hollow latex (HL) particles of polymers or hybrid polymer/inorganic materials have advantages in efficient encapsulation of active ingredients, ability to improve opacity or hiding power, and low density. Due to the flexible design for achieving the desired functionality, polymeric HL particles serve as stimuli-responsive capsules for drug delivery and cosmetics, white pigment for coatings, as well as nanoreactors for the confined reactions. Among numerous studies on the synthesis of HL particles for specific applications, this review article summarizes the recent works on the HL particles prepared from both synthetic and natural polymers. The template-based methods using sacrificial hard or soft template, self-templating, and nonsacrificial techniques are described. Various factors affecting morphologies and properties of HL particles are discussed in detail. Their applications in coatings, cosmetics, biomedicines, electronics, and others are also presented.

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In concentrated suspensions of polymer-functionalized nanoparticles, the softness of the core nanoparticles has a crucial effect on the mechanical behaviour of the resulting colloidal gels.

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