Motion of Adsorbed Nano-Particles on Azobenzene Containing Polymer Films
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Department of Experimental Physics, Institute of Physics and Astronomy, University of Potsdam, 14476 Potsdam, Germany
2
Nanostructured Materials Laboratory, The University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA
3
Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iasi, Department of Natural and Synthetic Polymers, Prof. Dimitrie Mangeron Street, 73, 700050 Iasi, Romania
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editors: Haifeng Yu, Arri Priimägi and Xiaogong Wang
Molecules 2016, 21(12), 1663; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules21121663
Received: 23 September 2016
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Revised: 25 October 2016
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Accepted: 18 November 2016
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Published: 3 December 2016
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Photoresponsive Polymers)
We demonstrate in situ recorded motion of nano-objects adsorbed on a photosensitive polymer film. The motion is induced by a mass transport of the underlying photoresponsive polymer material occurring during irradiation with interference pattern. The polymer film contains azobenzene molecules that undergo reversible photoisomerization reaction from trans- to cis-conformation. Through a multi-scale chain of physico-chemical processes, this finally results in the macro-deformations of the film due to the changing elastic properties of polymer. The topographical deformation of the polymer surface is sensitive to a local distribution of the electrical field vector that allows for the generation of dynamic changes in the surface topography during irradiation with different light interference patterns. Polymer film deformation together with the motion of the adsorbed nano-particles are recorded using a homemade set-up combining an optical part for the generation of interference patterns and an atomic force microscope for acquiring the surface deformation. The particles undergo either translational or rotational motion. The direction of particle motion is towards the topography minima and opposite to the mass transport within the polymer film. The ability to relocate particles by photo-induced dynamic topography fluctuation offers a way for a non-contact simultaneous manipulation of a large number of adsorbed particles just in air at ambient conditions.
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Keywords:
motion of adsorbed nano-particles; azobenzene containing polymer films; fluctuating surfaces
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MDPI and ACS Style
Loebner, S.; Jelken, J.; Yadavalli, N.S.; Sava, E.; Hurduc, N.; Santer, S. Motion of Adsorbed Nano-Particles on Azobenzene Containing Polymer Films. Molecules 2016, 21, 1663. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules21121663
AMA Style
Loebner S, Jelken J, Yadavalli NS, Sava E, Hurduc N, Santer S. Motion of Adsorbed Nano-Particles on Azobenzene Containing Polymer Films. Molecules. 2016; 21(12):1663. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules21121663
Chicago/Turabian StyleLoebner, Sarah, Joachim Jelken, Nataraja S. Yadavalli, Elena Sava, Nicolae Hurduc, and Svetlana Santer. 2016. "Motion of Adsorbed Nano-Particles on Azobenzene Containing Polymer Films" Molecules 21, no. 12: 1663. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules21121663
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