Synthesis and self-assembly of terpyridine end-capped poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-block-poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) diblock copolymers

Abstract

At the basis of smart self-assembled materials are lying small building blocks that can hierarchically assemble in response to stimuli, e.g., temperature or chemical species. In this context, the synthesis of terpyridine end-capped poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate)-block-poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) diblock copolymers via controlled radical copolymerization is reported here. The self-assembly of those copolymers is investigated in dilute aqueous solutions while varying temperature or adding transition metal ions, respectively, leading to the formation of micellar nanostructures or metallosupramolecular triblock copolymers.

Keywords: block copolymers; metal-ligand interaction; smart materials; supramolecular assembly.