Ordered structures of diblock nanorods induced by diblock copolymers

The self-assembly of diblock copolymer (DBCP)/diblock nanorod (DBNR) mixtures are studied by using a dissipative particle dynamics simulation method. The microstructures of DBCP/DBNR blends depend on the type of DBCPs as well as the number of DBNRs. For the asymmetric DBCPs of A3B7, the morphological transition of DBCP/DBNR blends from cylinder phase to lamellar phase is observed for the DBNRs with suitable length and component. Meanwhile, for the symmetric DBCPs of A5B5, the lamellar morphologies of DBCP/DBNR blends can always maintain during the process of adding DBNRs to the blends except for the case of component length mismatch between the DBCPs and the DBNRs. On the other hand, DBCPs can also affect the orientation and the spatial distributions of DBNRs deeply, and the ordered structures of DBNRs are formed for the DBCP/DBNR blends with a large number of DBNRs. Comparisons with homopolymer/DBNR blends are made, and only the aggregation structures are observed in homopolymer/DBNR blends. This investigation can provide valuable assistance in exploring and designing complicated polymer/nanoparticle composites with the desired properties.