Polymer gels that memorize elements of molecular conformation

Carmen Alvarez-Lorenzo, Orhan Guney, Taro Oya, Yasuzo Sakai, Masatoshi Kobayashi, Takashi Enoki, Yukikazu Takeoka, Toru Ishibashi, Kenichi Kuroda, Kazunori Tanaka, Guoqiang Wang, Alexander Yu Grosberg, Satoru Masamune, Toyoichi Tanaka

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Weakly cross-linked heteropolymer gels that memorize molecular pairs have been designed and synthesized. The polymer consists of a main monomer component responsible for volume phase transition, methacrylic acid that adsorbs one divalent ion as a pair, and cross-links. The memory of pairing of methacrylic acids within the gels was encoded in the primary sequence of main monomers, methacrylic acids and cross-links within the gels, which was achieved by `imprinting', namely, by synthesizing gels while methacrylic monomers were paired prior to polymerization. The control gels, where methacrylic monomers were randomly distributed, showed frustration in forming pairs, whereas such frustration was completely diminished in the imprinted gels allowing the memory of pair formation.

    Original languageEnglish (US)
    Pages (from-to)8693-8697
    Number of pages5
    JournalMacromolecules
    Volume33
    Issue number23
    DOIs
    StatePublished - Nov 14 2000

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Organic Chemistry
    • Polymers and Plastics
    • Inorganic Chemistry
    • Materials Chemistry

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