A facile method to prepare the nonspherical amphiphilic random copolymer of poly(styrene-co-methacrylic acid) (poly(St-co-PMAA)) latex particles with well-defined shapes and high yields by one-step batch emulsifier-free polymerization was demonstrated. In our strategy, only varying the molar ratio of styrene (St) to methacrylic acid (MAA), no seed-particles, no cross-linker, and no multistep control procedures were needed. Due to the presence of carboxyl groups on the surface of (poly(St-co-PMAA) latex particles, these latex particles can be used as templates for fabricating core-shell nonspherical functional materials, such as poly(St-co-PMAA)@SiO2 and poly(St-co-PMAA)@polypyrrole). The corresponding nonspherical hollow structures (SiO2 and polypyrrole) could be obtained after removal of the templates. In addition, poly(St-co-PMAA) latex particles exhibit interesting morphologies in ethanol.
3D-gold octahedra superstructures are fabricated on a PAA brush using the seed-mediated growth method. The morphologies of the gold micronanostructures can be tuned by a strategy which opens up a new possibility for shape-controlled growth of noble metal structures.
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