Grenzschicht von wässrigen Blockcopolymerlösungen an polymerbeschichteten Substraten: Adsorbatstruktur und Benetzungsverhalten

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Gerhard Findenegg (†)
• Subject Area: Experimental Condensed Matter Physics
• Term: from 1998 to 2005
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5108766

This project aims to elucidate the way in which the ordering and self-assembly of surfactant molecules affects the wetting behaviour of solid substrates by dilute and concentrated aqueous solutions of these amphiphiles. In particular, we are interested in the wetting characteristics of silicon substrates covered by thin films of polystyrene or polymethylmethacrylate. The boundary layer of aqueous systems of alkyl-polyethoxylate surfactants against these polymer covered substrates will be studied mainly by neutron reflectometry and atomic force miccroscopy. The macroscopic wetting behaviour will be characterized by measuring equilibrium contact angles of sessile drops as a function of the surfactant concentration below and above the critical micelle concentration. It is anticipated that the combination of structure sensitive techniques with thermodynamic methods will shed more light on some of the intriguing questions posed by these "soft" interfaces in polymer/surfactant systems of great practical importance.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 1052: Benetzung und Strukturbildung an Grenzflächen
• Participating Person: Dr. Roland Steitz