University Chemistry ›› 2014, Vol. 29 ›› Issue (2): 6-13.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1000-8438.2014.02.002

• Chemistry Today • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Stimuli-responsive Self-assembly of Rod-coil Block Copolymers

Zhang Jinlong, Zhang Jie, Wan Xinhua   

  1. College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, P. R. China
  • Published:2014-04-25

Abstract: Rod-coil block copolymers (BCPs) constitute both of rigid rod-like blocks and the flexible coil-like blocks through the covalent connection. Due to the orientation tendency of rod blocks, rod-coil BCPs can not only self-assemble into various supramolecular structures, which are more distinct than their coil-coil counterparts. As a unique type of functional building blocks, the rod segment also endow the supramolecular materials with various applications. The sensitivity of supramolecular morphologies to multiple external stimuli, such as pH, light, temperature, and chemical additives, renders its promising application as smart materials. This review highlights some valuable contributions in the past years on the self-assembly behavior of stimuli-responsive rod-coil BCPs, and the trend in the development of this field has also been discussed.

Key words: rod-coil block copolymer, self-assembly, stimuli-responsive