Stability of the perforated layer (PL) phase in diblock copolymer melts

Damian A Hajduk, Hiroshi Takenouchi, Marc A Hillmyer, Frank S. Bates, Martin Etchells Vigild, Kristoffer Almdal

    Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

    Abstract

    We reexamine the stability of hexagonally modulated layer (HML) and hexagonally perforated layer (HPL) morphologies in a number of block copolymer systems of low to moderate molecular weight. Using small-angle X-ray scattering and dynamic mechanical spectroscopy, we show that these structures are long-lived nonequilibrium states which convert to the bicontinuous gyroid (G) morphology upon isothermal annealing. Comparison of phase transition kinetics across chemically distinct systems spanning a wide range of molecular weights and monomeric friction coefficients reveals a composition dependence to these dynamics. This suggests effects associated with the mobility of individual chains are of lesser importance in explaining the apparent metastability of the HML and HPL structures: instead, the composition dependence of the transition mechanism appears to dominate the observed behavior. The revised phase behavior for these materials is in excellent agreement with mean-field predictions for diblock copolymer melts.
    Original languageEnglish
    JournalMacromolecules
    Volume30
    Issue number13
    Pages (from-to)3788-3795
    ISSN0024-9297
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1997

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