Interfacial self-assembly of amphiphilic conjugated block copolymer into 2D nanotapes

Abstract

In the present work, the evaporation-induced interfacial self-assembly behavior of an amphiphilic conjugated polymer, poly(3-hexylthiophene)-b-poly(acrylic acid) (P3HT-b-PAA), at the oil–water interface is explored. Novel 2D nanotapes of P3HT-b-PAA are prepared via the interfacial self-assembly. It is inferred that P3HT segments adopt a special conformation at the oil–water interface, which facilitates the packing of alkyl side chains and π–π interaction. The UV-vis spectrum further confirms that the ordering degree of P3HT segments is increased while transmission IR and Raman spectroscopic studies suggest that the P3HT chains adopt a more planar conformation at the oil–water interface. It is proposed that the formation of the nanotapes is driven by the ordered packing of the P3HT chains at the oil–water interface. Finally, the packing model of the P3HT chains inside the nanotapes is roughly proposed.