Interfacially Tailored Fillers for Polymer Nanocomposites

Monodisperse polymer layers with spatially controlled chemistry were grown on the surfaces of nanoparticles at low and high graft density. These interfacial regions possessed higher molecular weight and lower polydispersity (< 1.2) than previously achieved by other synthetic approaches. This critical advance opens up new avenues for both tuning and studying interfacial-driven effects on polymer nanocomposite properties, as well as new opportunities for synthesizing supramolecularly organized nanoparticle fillers with tailored optical and electronic behavior.

Cover Article - C. Li, B. C. Benicewicz, J. Polym. Sci.: Part A: Polym. Chem., 43 (in press); C. Li, B. C. Benicewicz, Macromolecules, (in review)