| AVS 62nd International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Surface Science | Tuesday Sessions |
| Session SS-TuP |
| Session: | Surface Science Poster Session |
| Presenter: | Robert Frank-Finney, University of Southern California |
| Authors: | R. Frank-Finney, University of Southern California P. Haller, University of Southern California M. Gupta, University of Southern California |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
The vapor phase deposition of polymers onto liquid substrates can result in the formation of polymer films or particles at the liquid–vapor interface. The initial polymer morphology at the interface is determined by the surface tension interaction between the liquid and polymer. Polymer particles form when it is energetically favorable for the polymer to aggregate rather than spread over the surface of the liquid as characterized by a spreading coefficient. The particles that are formed on the surface either remain partially protruding from the surface or submerge below the surface based on the engulfment energy of the polymer-liquid interaction. We systematically study the effects of deposition time, molecular weight, polymer accumulation, and liquid viscosity on the particle size and distribution to determine the mechanism of growth. Our results provide a fundamental understanding about polymer growth at the liquid–vapor interface that can be used to tailor the reaction conditions to produce particles of a desired size and improve upon the size distribution and can even offer insight into the growth of other materials on liquid surfaces. Vapor phase deposition onto liquid substrates is a rapid, one-step synthetic approach for fabricating functional polymer nanoparticles without the use of surfactants or volatile solvents.