Yuji Higaki, Yoshihiro Inutsuka, Tatsunori Sakamaki, Yuki Terayama, Ai Takenaka, Keiko Higaki, Norifumi L Yamada, Taro Moriwaki, Yuka Ikemoto, Atsushi Takahara
Effect of alkyl chain spacer length between the charged groups (CSL) in zwitterionic poly(sulfobetaine) (PSB) brushes on the hydration state was investigated. PSB brushes with ethyl (PMAES), propyl (PMAPS), or butyl (PMABS) CSL were prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization on silicon wafers. Hydration states of the PSB brushes in aqueous solutions and/or humid vapor were investigated by contact angle measurement, infrared spectroscopy, AFM observation, and neutron reflectivity. The PSB brushes are swollen in humid air and deionized water due to the hydration of the charged groups leading to the reduction of hydrated PSB brushes/water interfacial free energy...
August 29, 2017: Langmuir: the ACS Journal of Surfaces and Colloids