Self-assembly of amphiphilic alternating copolymers with stimuli-responsive rigid pendant groups

Abstract

Amphiphilic alternating copolymers (AACs) possess unique self-assembly behaviours owing to their unique regular architecture. In this work, we employed dissipative particle dynamics simulations to explore the self-assembly behaviours of AACs with rigid pendants in selective solvents. The effects of block lengths and copolymer concentrations on the morphology of aggregates were examined. Two morphology diagrams were mapped out to provide a comprehensive understanding of the effect of these factors. The self-assembly process and the structure of aggregates were analysed in detail. The result shows that the amphiphilic alternating architecture can dramatically disturb the tendency of the ordered arrangement of rigid blocks. Furthermore, a rod-to-coil conformation transition of rigid blocks was performed to investigate the stimuli-responsive self-assembly behaviours. A comparison between the simulation results and our previous experimental observations was made, and the agreement is achieved.