Electrodeposition of an electroactive polymer and subsequent polymerization of monomers is a novel route to anchor polymer chains to electrode surfaces.
A colloquium paper in EPJE reports the combination of the so-called “grafting through” approach and the formation of conjugated polymer networks. This tandem approach makes it possible to obtain films with double or multi-component polymer systems. Moreover it’s versatile as it enables deposition on any conducting surface.
These types of films are useful for distinct polymer multilayers made of electro-optically active conducting polymers and insulating vinylic and functional polymers that are chemically bound. Such films have potential applications in display devices, sensors, anti-corrosion coatings, controlled wetting surfaces, and anti-static materials.
To read the full paper ‘RAFT “grafting-through” approach to surface-anchored polymers: Electrodeposition of an electroactive methacrylate monomer’, C. D. Grande, M. C. Tria, M. J. Felipe, F. Zuluaga and R. Advincula, Eur. Phys. J. E (2011) 34, 15, click here.
