CAREER: Responsive, Surface-Attached Networks with Built-in Logic - An Integrated Research and Education Plan

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TECHNICAL SUMMARY: This proposal will delineate structure-property relationships in stimuli-responsive polymer films through the following: 1) Seeking photo-cross-linkable copolymers that incorporate lower critical solution temperature (LCST) motifs and that enable the fast and simple fabrication of surface-attached networks; 2) Probing permutations of hydrophobic/hydrophilic groups in LCST motifs to draw vital connections between response characteristics and molecular interactions; 3) Exploiting the Hofmeister salt series to identify the mechanisms of volume-phase transitions; and 4) Designing amino acid sequences into the polymer films to facilitate control over volume-phase transitions. The PI's work, for the first time, will systematically explore relationships in confined LCST polymers to develop a predictive framework for the design of active surfaces. Second, this research will provide critical tests of LCST theory and will contribute new, novel insights into the molecular design of responsive motifs for controlled response logic. Knowledge gained during this effort will be immediately used to address important pipeline issues for enhancing students' interest in science and engineering through outreach to local high schools. Finally, the research will positively impact undergraduate education through its incorporation into a new undergraduate course.NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: LCST polymers are a class of soft materials that can endow sensing and actuation capabilities to surfaces. This proposed effort will forge a blueprint for designing active surfaces that respond to an environmental stimulus in a predictable manner. The outcomes promise a number of advances from inexpensive sensors to sample processing in microfluidic platforms to materials capable of digital computation. The research is connected to outreach programs at local high schools that will enhance and diversify curriculums in chemistry, and provide a mechanism for the research contained herein to reach a young and impressionable audience. Moreover, this research is carried out in collaboration with national laboratories that enable interdisciplinary relationships for the graduate students and enhanced opportunities after their doctoral work.