Poly(cyclohexylethylene)-block-poly(ethylene oxide) Block Polymers for Metal Oxide Templating

A series of poly(cyclohexylethylene)-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (CEO) diblock copolymers were synthesized through tandem anionic polymerizations and heterogeneous catalytic hydrogenation. Solvent-annealed CEO diblock films were used to template dense arrays of inorganic oxide nanodots via simple spin coating of an inorganic precursor solution atop the ordered film. The substantial chemical dissimilarity of the two blocks enables (i) selective inclusion of the inorganic precursor within the PEO domain and (ii) the formation of exceptionally small feature sizes due to a relatively large interaction parameter estimated from mean-field analysis of the order-disorder transition temperatures of compositionally symmetric samples. UV/ozone treatment following incorporation produces an ordered arrangement of oxide nanodots and simultaneously removes the block polymer template. Herein, we report the smallest particles (6 ± 1 nm) templated from a selective precursor insertion method to date using a block polymer scaffold.