Issue 44, 2017

Reversible strain alignment and reshuffling of nanoplatelet stacks confined in a lamellar block copolymer matrix

Abstract

We designed a nanocomposite consisting of CdSe nanoplatelets dispersed in the form of short stacks in the polybutadiene domains of a polystyrene–polybutadiene–polystyrene (SBS) thermoplastic elastomer matrix. Under strain, the material displays reversible, macroscopic anisotropic properties, e.g. the fluorescence signal. We present here a structural study of the composite under stretching, by in situ high-resolution X-ray scattering using synchrotron radiation. Modelling the scattering signal allows us to monitor the evolution of both the matrix and the platelets under strain. In particular, we show that the strain “reshuffles” the platelet stacks, which tilt their long axis from parallel to the plane of the microstructure lamellae at rest to perpendicular to this plane at high strain, at the same time breaking into smaller pieces, more easily accommodated in the soft butadiene domains. This reshuffling is fully reversed after strain relaxation. Moreover, it can be prevented by adding free oleic acid, which reinforces the interactions between the platelets in the stacks.

Graphical abstract: Reversible strain alignment and reshuffling of nanoplatelet stacks confined in a lamellar block copolymer matrix

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
03 Aug 2017
Accepted
11 Oct 2017
First published
02 Nov 2017

Nanoscale, 2017,9, 17371-17377

Reversible strain alignment and reshuffling of nanoplatelet stacks confined in a lamellar block copolymer matrix

E. Beaudoin, P. Davidson, B. Abecassis, T. Bizien and D. Constantin, Nanoscale, 2017, 9, 17371 DOI: 10.1039/C7NR05723G

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements