The self-assembly of amphiphilic polymers in water: fundamental physio-chemical studies toward multiresponsive systems

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Nanotechnology has become part of daily life throughout the world, bringing with it hope, excitement, or fear. It underlies the latest advances in areas as varied as communications, entertainment, waste management, "green" energy, and healthcare. Nanosized metals, such as gold, and semiconductors, in the form of luminescent quantum dots, play a crucial role in the elaboration of nanomaterials. Soft materials, also, are active contributors in this revolution. The term "active" should in fact be taken literally, since many nanomaterials rely on the so-called "stimuli-responsive polymers" that exhibit large, reversible or irreversible, changes in physical properties or chemical structures upon application of small and specific changes in their external environment. The soft materials of choice for such applications are finely crafted macromolecules, which bear little similarity to the cheap commodity polymers designed for "low-tech" uses. Intuitively, one would anticipate that responsive polymers should play an important role in detection and sensing applications. However, the development of responsive polymer-based sensors is still in its infancy compared to conventional sensors, a situation that strongly argues in favor of enhanced research in this field.