Speaker:
Arthi Jayaraman
Date of Talk:
11/19/10
Affiliation:
Jayaraman Group, University of Colorado- Boulder
Title:
Molecular Theory and Simulation Studies of Polymer Functionalized Nanoparticles
Abstract
Precise assembly and ordering of nanoparticles mediated by a solvent or a polymer matrix is extremely important for creating spatially engineered materials that can be used for photonics, metamaterials, photovoltaic, and electronics applications. Functionalizing nanoparticles with organic ligands, such as oligomers, polymers, DNA, and proteins is an attractive way to manipulate the interactions between the nanoparticles and the medium the particles are placed in, and thus control the nanoparticle assembly. In my group we computationally study polymer- and DNA- functionalized nanoparticles using an integrated approach involving ‘Polymer Reference Interaction Site Model’ (PRISM) theory and Monte Carlo simulations. In this talk I will focus on polymer-functionalized nanoparticles placed in small molecule solvent and in polymer matrix, and demonstrate that by systematically tuning the chemistry, monomer sequence, molecular weight and grafting density of the polymers grafted on the particle we can tailor the conformations of the polymer grafts, the effective inter-particle interactions and the assembly of the functionalized nanoparticles.
