Structure-Property Relationship of Polymer Nanocomposite Films and Coatings
A special issue of Polymers (ISSN 2073-4360). This special issue belongs to the section "Polymer Membranes and Films".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2026
Special Issue Editor
Interests: spectroscopic ellipsometry; variable temperature ellipsometry; thin polymer films; polymer-nanoparticles/nanowires composites
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Polymeric materials are among the most commonly used materials in the modern world and are the subject of research in many scientific fields. They can be employed in various industries, ranging from electronics to medicine, biology, and aerospace, among many others. Polymers can be utilized, for example, in the form of thin films in various electronic devices, such as organic solar cells (OSC) or organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), where they act as active layers. They can also be used as insulating or protective coatings with dedicated physical properties. A distinctive group are composite materials in which inor-ganic nanoparticles or nanowires are evenly distributed throughout the polymer matrix.
Inorganic nanoparticles (NP) or nanowires (NW) added to a polymer matrix can significantly alter the physical properties of the resulting composite, compared to those of a pure polymer matrix. Depending on the application, these may include optical, thermal, electrical, or mechanical properties. In this Special Issue, we would like to focus on polymer coatings and their composites, comparing the above-mentioned properties of pure polymers with their composites, and the processes that cause these changes. To examine these mechanisms, it is necessary to understand their structural properties, morphology, thermal stability and other parameters. Of particular interest is the interaction between polymer chains and the surfaces of nanoparticles or nanowires. These interactions are crucial for the subsequent applications of these materials—ranging from plasmonic phenomena to the formation of simple hydrogen bonds.
The aim of this Special Issue, entitled “Advances in Structure-Property Relationship of Polymer Nanocomposite Films and Coatings”, is to collect original articles that address the physical properties and novel application of polymers and polymer/NW or polymer/NP composites.
This Special Issue will focus on their internal and morphological structure, thermal properties, and optical and mechanical properties, such as nanohardness. We also welcome papers that describe the effects of factors such as UV radiation, variable temperature, or humidity on polymer coatings, which can act as protective coatings against environmental factors.
Dr. Barbara Hajduk
Guest Editor
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- inorganic nanoparticles
- inorganic wires
- polymer films
- polymer coatings
- optical properties
- thermal properties
- mechanical properties
- polymer-nanoadditive interaction
- structural properties
- morphology
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