The structure and phase behaviour of bilayer membranes self-assembled from rod-coil diblock copolymers are studied using the self-consistent field theory, focusing on the occurrence and relative stability of liquid crystalline phases induced by the geometric shape and orientational interaction of the rod-blocks. A variety of liquid crystalline bilayers, corresponding to the smectic phases in bulk systems, are predicted to occur as equilibrium phases of the system. The ordered morphologies and phase behaviour of the system are analyzed. Phase diagrams of the self-assembled bilayers are constructed. The theoretical results provide an understanding of the formation mechanisms of these intricate phases.

Combining high‐throughput experiments with machine learning accelerates materials and process optimization toward user‐specified target properties. In this study, a rapid machine learning‐driven automated flow mixing setup with a high‐throughput drop‐casting system is introduced for thin film preparation, followed by fast characterization of proxy optical and target electrical properties that completes one cycle of learning with 160 unique samples in a single day, a >10× improvement relative to quantified, manual‐controlled baseline. Regio‐regular poly‐3‐hexylthiophene is combined with various types of carbon nanotubes, to identify the optimum composition and synthesis conditions to realize electrical conductivities as high as state‐of‐the‐art 1000 S cm−1. The results are subsequently verified and explained using offline high‐fidelity experiments. Graph‐based model selection strategies with classical regression that optimize among multi‐fidelity noisy input‐output measurements are introduced. These strategies present a robust machine‐learning driven high‐throughput experimental scheme that can be effectively applied to understand, optimize, and design new materials and composites.

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The elastic properties of bilayers self-assembled from rod–coil diblock copolymers are strongly affected by the liquid-crystalline order of the rods.

Bilayer membranes self-assembled from amphiphilic molecules are ubiquitous in biological and soft matter systems. The elastic properties of bilayer membranes are essential in determining the shape and structure of bilayers. A novel method to calculate the elastic moduli of the self-assembled bilayers within the framework of the self-consistent field theory is developed based on an asymptotic expansion of the order parameters in terms of the bilayer curvature. In particular, the asymptotic expansion method is used to derive analytic expressions of the elastic moduli, which allows us to design more efficient numerical schemes. The efficiency of the proposed method is illustrated by a model system composed of flexible amphiphilic chains dissolved in hydrophilic polymeric solvents.