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Related Concept Videos

Polymer Classification: Crystallinity01:21

Polymer Classification: Crystallinity

Unlike ionic or small covalent molecules, polymers do not form crystalline solids due to the diffusion limitations of their long-chain structures. However, polymers contain microscopic crystalline domains separated by amorphous domains.
Crystalline domains are the regions where polymer chains are aligned in an orderly manner and held together in proximity by intermolecular forces. For example, chains in the crystalline domains of polyethylene and nylon are bound together by van der Waals...
Polymer Classification: Architecture01:14

Polymer Classification: Architecture

Polymers are classified as linear or branched on the basis of their chain architecture. The polymer chains in linear polymers have a long chain-like structure with minimal to no branching at all. Even if a polymer features large substituent groups on the monomer, which appear as branches to the skeleton, it is not considered a branched polymer. A branched polymer contains secondary polymer chains that arise from the main polymer chain. The branching occurs when the polymer growth shifts from...
Polymer Classification: Stereospecificity01:26

Polymer Classification: Stereospecificity

Polymerization generates chiral centers along the entire backbone of a polymer chain. Accordingly, the stereochemistry of the substituent group has a significant effect on polymer properties. Polymers formed from monosubstituted alkene monomers feature chiral carbons at every alternate position in the polymer backbone. Relative to the predominant orientation of substituents at the adjacent chiral carbons, the polymer can exist in three different configurations: isotactic, syndiotactic, and...
Photochemical Electrocyclic Reactions: Stereochemistry01:26

Photochemical Electrocyclic Reactions: Stereochemistry

The absorption of UV–visible light by conjugated systems causes the promotion of an electron from the ground state to the excited state. Consequently, photochemical electrocyclic reactions proceed via the excited-state HOMO rather than the ground-state HOMO. Since the ground- and excited-state HOMOs have different symmetries, the stereochemical outcome of electrocyclic reactions depends on the mode of activation; i.e., thermal or photochemical.
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Thermal and Photochemical Electrocyclic Reactions: Overview

Electrocyclic reactions are reversible reactions. They involve an intramolecular cyclization or ring-opening of a conjugated polyene. Shown below are two examples of electrocyclic reactions. In the first reaction, the formation of the cyclic product is favored. In contrast, in the second reaction, ring-opening is favored due to the high ring strain associated with cyclobutene formation.

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Monitoring the Effects of Illumination on the Structure of Conjugated Polymer Gels Using Neutron Scattering
06:16

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Published on: December 21, 2017

Photoregulated Structural Memory in Supramolecular Polymers.

Franziska Helmrich1, Alejandro Martínez-Manjarrés1, Antonia Albers1

  • 1Universität Münster, Organisch-Chemisches Institut, Corrensstraße 36, 48149 Münster, Germany.

Journal of the American Chemical Society
|July 2, 2026
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Researchers developed supramolecular polymers (SPs) with structural memory using light-controlled self-assembly. These materials retain pathway information, paving the way for history-dependent adaptive soft matter.

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Supramolecular Chemistry
  • Soft Matter Physics

Background:

  • Memory is crucial for adaptive behavior in biological systems and inspires artificial materials.
  • While macroscopic materials exhibit memory, molecular-level structural memory in supramolecular polymers (SPs) is underexplored.
  • Existing SP memory research primarily focuses on chiral memory, leaving structural memory largely uninvestigated.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To demonstrate structural memory in supramolecular polymers (SPs) via light-driven self-assembly.
  • To explore pathway-dependent supramolecular architectures.
  • To advance the design of history-dependent adaptive soft matter.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized a photoswitchable dithienylethene-based molecular building block.
  • Controlled reversible interconversion between open- and closed-ring isomers.
  • Manipulated light irradiation sequences and supramolecular polymerization.

Main Results:

  • Both isomers formed one-dimensional fibers, but with distinct morphologies (rigid/bundled vs. flexible/individual).
  • Achieved pathway-dependent supramolecular architectures.
  • Demonstrated retention of formation history despite molecular-level changes.

Conclusions:

  • Established a method for creating SPs with structural memory.
  • Showcased the potential for storing pathway information in soft matter.
  • Advanced the field of history-dependent adaptive materials.