Polymer brushes here, there, and everywhere: Recent advances in their practical applications and emerging opportunities in multiple research fields

Abstract

Bottom-up surface processing with well-defined polymeric structures becomes increasingly important in many current technologies. Polymer brushes, that is, assemblies of macromolecules tethered at one end to a substrate, provide an exemplary system of materials capable of achieving such a goal. While the focus in the past decades has been mostly on their synthetic aspects and the in-depth study of their interesting properties, from several years now the core area of research has already started to shift towards specific practical applications. Ample functional versatility and relative ease of preparation are special strengths of polymer brushes, lending them a strong interdisciplinary character. To this end, this work is entirely dedicated to bringing together the latest research on applications of polymer brushes in multiple research fields. The aim of this review are twofold: first, to give a critical discussion of the current status of development of application-oriented research on polymer brushes, and second, to inform the reader as to what can be done with polymer brushes in multiple research fields. It is therefore hoped that the juxtaposition of perspectives from different disciplines in one place will stimulate and contribute to the ongoing process of cross-fertilization that is driving this fascinating and emerging area of polymer science. V C 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 50: 2012

From Self-Assembled Monolayers to Coatings: Advances in the Synthesis and Nanobio Applications of Polymer Brushes

“…At lower grafting densities the "mushroom regime" is defined. Termed "polymer brushes", these materials have an assortment of applications and particularly, the ability to alter surface properties including bio-adhesion [1], wettability [2], modulating interfacial electronic properties [3], and surface activity [4]. Often these properties are classified under the broader term of "responsive surfaces" [5].…”

Brushes of semiflexible polymers in equilibrium and under flow in a super-hydrophobic regime

“…They are also used as coatings in "smart surfaces" to fine tune reversibly some property of an interface upon changes in external stimuli, for example, PH [5], temperature, solvent quality [6,7]. Brushes are at the forefront of recent developments, ranging from responsive bio-interphases, controlled drug-delivery and release systems, thin films and particles, which act as sensors of minute amounts of analytes [3,6]. The geometry and curvature of the grafted surface contribute also to distinctive properties of brushes, which can be grown in planar or cylindrical geometries, in the surface of nanoparticles or into the backbone of macromolecules (bottle-brushes) [1,8].…”

“…Polymer brushes are enormously versatile systems, whose properties can be tailored chemically and physically [1][2][3]. They were studied with great interest due to their technological significance, biophysical importance and theoretical subtleties and complexity.…”

Crafting positive/negative patterns and nanopillars of polymer brushes by photocatalytic lithography

“…Successful examples of such approach include, but are not limited to, self-cleaning surfaces, microfluidic devices, sensors and actuators. [3][4][5][6][7][8] Progresses in surface-initiated polymerization (SIP) made the production of patterned polymer brushes a straightforward process in which a pre-patterned initiator monolayer, grafted on the surface, is amplified from a two-dimensional (2D) pattern into a three-dimensional (3D) brush structure by SIP. 9 Such approach is called "grafting-from", as opposed to "grafting-to" which relies on the attachment of pre-made polymer chains, and is nowadays the election method to obtain polymer brushes.…”