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Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level

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Published on: September 26, 2016

Two-photon polymerization of polydiacetylene.

Olga Shusterman¹, Amir Berman, Yuval Golan

¹Department of Physics, Ilse Katz Institute for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva 84105, Israel.

The Journal of Physical Chemistry. B

|January 30, 2009

Summary

Visible light polymerization of diacetylene monomers into polydiacetylene (PDA) was achieved via a two-photon process. This method yields a stable blue phase PDA, unlike UV polymerization.

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Area of Science:

Polymer Chemistry
Photophysics
Materials Science

Background:

Diacetylene monomers can be polymerized to form polydiacetylenes (PDA), which exhibit unique optical and electronic properties.
Traditional polymerization methods, such as UV-induced polymerization, often lead to rapid phase transformations in PDA, limiting their stability and applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the feasibility of using visible light for the two-photon polymerization of diacetylene monomers.
To characterize the resulting polydiacetylene (PDA) and compare its properties to those obtained via UV polymerization.

Main Methods:

Visible light-induced two-photon polymerization of diacetylene monomers.
Monitoring polymerization progress by measuring Raman intensities of PDA.
Utilizing a 633 nm Raman laser with variable intensity (I) to probe the reaction.
Analyzing the dependence of Raman cross-section on laser intensity to confirm the two-photon process.

Main Results:

Visible light successfully induced two-photon polymerization of diacetylene monomers into PDA.
The Raman cross-section of PDA showed an I^3 dependence at short times, confirming a two-photon absorption mechanism.
The polymerization process generated a relatively stable blue phase PDA.
This blue phase PDA exhibited greater stability compared to the blue-to-red phase transformation observed in UV-polymerized PDA.

Conclusions:

Visible light two-photon polymerization is an effective method for synthesizing stable blue phase polydiacetylenes.
This approach offers a controlled and stable alternative to UV polymerization for PDA synthesis.
The findings open avenues for new applications of PDA materials requiring enhanced phase stability.