Amphiphilic Double-Brush Polymers Based on Itaconate Diesters

Itaconic anhydride, a biosourced molecule, was readily transformed to polymerizable nonionic amphiphiles of the type R-Ita-R′; these amphiphiles carry an <i>exo</i>-chain double bond, which upon polymerization yielded amphiphilic double-brush polymers, especially when R and R′ are immiscible, and consequently exhibit a tendency to self-segregate. DSC, WAXS, SAXS, and variable temperature FT-IR studies of these amphiphilic double-brush polymers confirm the occurrence of self-segregation followed by crystallization of the cetyl segments; in most cases a lamellar morphology is seen wherein the two immiscible segments form the alternating lamellae and the polymer backbone presumably lie along their interface. C16-Ita-HEG, which carries a hydrophobic cetyl chain and a hydrophilic heptaethylene glycol monomethyl ether unit, forms a hydrogel upon polymerization at concentrations above 2.5 wt %; an interesting feature of this hydrogel is that it exhibits a reversible thermal and shear-induced transformation to a sol, a property that could be of interest for biomedical applications

Stretching Single Polymer Chains of Donor–Acceptor Foldamers: Toward the Quantitative Study on the Extent of Folding

Single-molecule force spectroscopy has proven to be an efficient tool for the quantitative characterization of flexible foldamers on the single-molecule level in this study. The extent of folding has been estimated quantitatively for the first time to the best of our knowledge, which is crucial for a better understanding of the “folding-process” on single-molecule level. Therefore, this study may provide a guidance to regulate folding for realizing rational control over the functions of bulk materials

Stretching Single Polymer Chains of Donor–Acceptor Foldamers: Toward the Quantitative Study on the Extent of Folding

Single-molecule force spectroscopy has proven to be an efficient tool for the quantitative characterization of flexible foldamers on the single-molecule level in this study. The extent of folding has been estimated quantitatively for the first time to the best of our knowledge, which is crucial for a better understanding of the “folding-process” on single-molecule level. Therefore, this study may provide a guidance to regulate folding for realizing rational control over the functions of bulk materials