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Updated: Dec 5, 2025

Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level
Published on: September 26, 2016
Universal dynamics of coarsening during polymer-polymer thin-film spinodal dewetting kinetics
J Lal1,2,3, L B Lurio3, D Liang2
1Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, Illinois 60439, USA.
Abstract:
The dewetting dynamics of a supported bilayer polymer thin film on a solid substrate is investigated using grazing incidence x-ray photon correlation spectroscopy. We find that the top layer dewets via the spinodal mechanism. The kinetics of the dewetting is studied by monitoring the time evolution of the surface diffuse x-ray scattering intensity. We study the time evolution of fluctuations about the average surface structure by measuring the two-time x-ray intensity fluctuation correlation functions. Using these two-time correlation functions we quantify the crossover from early-time diffusive dynamics to hydrodynamics. The early diffusive regime satisfies dynamic universality. The two-time correlation functions also quantify the onset of hydrodynamic effects. The hydrodynamic regime is observed during the spinodal dewetting process as these interactions are not screened.
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