Polymer, Vol.74, 70-75, 2015
Interpenetration of chemically identical polymer onto grafted substrates
Interpenetrating interfaces between a deuterated polystyrene (dPS) and the grafted substrates with the same chemical identity were characterized using neutron reflectivity (NR) measurements, where the PSgrafted substrates were prepared using a grafting-to approach with hydroxyl end-functionalized polystyrene (PSOH) in a dry brush regime. The characteristic brush thickness (h(d)) and grafting density (sigma) of PS-grafted layers were determined based on the chain length (or molecular weight, M-n) of PSOHs. The experimental interpenetration length (zeta) was measured at the interfaces, and the limiting plateau in x above which the value was independent of film thickness shifted toward higher values as the M-n of PSOH increased. Normalization by the deformed brush thickness (h(d)) of PS-grafted layer after interpenetration revealed that the experimental value of zeta/h(d) in a short and dense PS-grafted substrate, prepared with a low-molecular-weight PSOH, deviated markedly from the theoretical value, indicating significant additional stretching of the grafted chains to accommodate inter-mixing with the dPS chains. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.