A small angle X-ray scattering study of sizes and shapes of poly(benzyl ether) dendrimer molecules

The structure of a series of poly(benzyl ether) dendrimers was derived from small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) experiments of highly diluted solutions. The form factor contribution of the uncorrelated macromolecules contains information on their size and shape and reveals that they attain a globular structure. Electron distributions, calculated form the scattering data point towards an ellipsoidal shape with a rather uniform distribution of the electron density and hence the monomer subunits within the macromolecules