SONSEUROCORES - COMPLEXITY ACROSS LENGTHSCALES IN SOFT MATTER (SCALES)

该项目旨在将参与软物质研究互补方面的小组的专业知识与不同长度尺度上的复杂自组织结合起来。最近，从原子到10 nm和100 nm的尺度上的自排序图案的显著相似之处得到了强调。本项目将特别关注由液晶和由3和4种不相容类型的部分组成的星形嵌段共聚物形成的新型高度复杂的结构。最近引入的三元两亲化合物中的蜂窝状柱状LC相的多样性和复杂性正在迅速扩大，尽管它们将得到进一步的开发，但在该项目过程中将合成和研究几个系列的四元两亲化合物，以期创建复杂的三维结构。此外，从LC工作中学到的设计原则也将用于扩大混合臂三元和四元聚合物的2-D相和表面图案的范围。同时，将尝试通过应用多嵌段共聚物中显著的2-D和3-D相范围背后的原理来扩大结构LC相的范围。受到最近在两亲性液晶和嵌段共聚物中发现的液体准晶和密切相关的2-D相的启发，人们将尝试创建类似的复杂结构和可能的准周期结构，例如可能导致近乎各向同性的光子带隙材料。新结构还将掺杂金属离子和功能分子等客体物种，以研究其进一步的应用潜力。还将应用一种使用液晶介质在胶体长度尺度上创建秩序的新方法。合作伙伴是各自领域的领先团体，在合成、形态和结构表征、核磁共振、模拟和理论方面具有互补的专业知识。

The project aims to combine the expertise of groups involved in complementary aspects of research into soft matter with complex self-organization on different length scales. Significant similarities in self-ordering patterns on scales from atomic to 10 and 100 nm have been highlighted recently. This project will focus in particular on novel highly complex structures formed by liquid crystals and star block copolymers consisting of 3 and 4 incompatible types of moieties. The recently introduced honeycomb columnar LC phases in ternary amphiphiles are rapidly expanding in diversity and complexity and, while they will be developed further, several series of quaternary amphiphilic compounds will be synthesised and studied in the course of the project, with a view on creating complex 3-d structures. Furthermore, the design principles learned from the LC work will also be used to expand the range of 2-d phases and surface patterns in miktoarm ter- and quaterpolymers. At the same time attempts will be made to enlarge the range of structured LC phases by applying the principles behind the remarkable range of 2-d and 3-d phases in multiblock copolymers. Inspired by the recent discovery of liquid quasicrystals and closely related 2-d phases in amphiphilic LC's and block copolymers, creation of similar complex and possibly quasiperiodic structures will be attempted, possibly leading to e.g. nearly isotropic photonic bandgap materials. The new structures will also be doped with guest species such as metal ions and functional molecules to investigate their further application potential. A novel approach to create order on colloidal length scale using liquid crystal medium will also be applied. The partners are leading groups in their fields with complementary expertise in synthesis, morphological and structural characterization, NMR, simulation and theory.