Preparation of organic/inorganic hybrid nanoballs using aggregates of PTMSPMA-b-PSMA-Fc-PSMA-b-PTMSPMA block copolymers as precursors

Brush-type amphiphilic block copolymers of 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (TMSPMA) and stearyl methacrylate (SMA) were prepared through the initiation of chloroacetylferrocene using atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) in anisole solution. The resultant copolymers were characterized by ¹H NMR and GPC. We investigated the morphologies and sizes of organic/inorganic hybrid nanoballs using aggregates of these multi-block copolymers as precursors after a sol-gel process. The effect of the copolymer-solvent interaction on these aggregations was discussed.