Ziel dieser Arbeit ist die Darstellung funktioneller Materialien, die ein multi-sensitives Ansprechverhalten aufweisen. Die Charakterisierung des Quellverhaltens der Gele stellt die Voraussetzung dar, die phasenseparierten Polymerfilme als multi-sensitive Sensorschichten mit verbessertem Ansprechverhalten einzusetzen. Die Aufgabe dieser Arbeit besteht in der Synthese von AB-Blockcopolymeren, die im wässrigen Medium auf die Temperatur oder auf die Temperatur und den pH-Wert ansprechen. Unter Verwendung der Makroinitiator-Technik werden Blockcopolymere synthetisiert. Zunächst werden temperatur-sensitive Polymere mit einem wasserlöslichen Polyethylenglykol-Block (PEG) und N-Isopropylacrylamid (NIPAAm) mittels "Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization" (ATRP) hergestellt. Die Umsetzung der durch "Nitroxide Mediated Radical Polymerization" (NMRP) hergestellten pH-sensitiven Poly(2-vinylpyridin)-Blöcke (P2VP) mit NIPAAm führt zu multi-sensitiven Blockcopolymeren. Da die Polymere auf ihre Quelleigenschaften in dünnen Filmen hin untersucht werden sollen, ist die Verwendung eines Chromophors, der in den NIPAAm-Block einpolymerisiert wird, nötig. Die Vernetzung der Polymerfilme erfolgt photochemisch. Das Quellverhalten der Polymerschichten wurde mit der Methode der "Surface Plasmon Resonance"-Spektroskopie (SPR) charakterisiert. Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit ist es gelungen, multi-sensitive Polymere darzustellen und deren Sensitivität in dünnen Polymerfilmen nachzuweisen. Bei den synthetisierten Polymeren handelt es sich um neuartige und funktionelle Materialien.

Aramide and arylene ether multiblock copolymers of (AB)n-type with various degrees of sulfonation have been prepared for use in direct methanol fuel cells. / Aramid- und Arylethersulfon-Multiblockcopolymere vom Typ (AB)n mit unterschiedlichem Sulfonierungsgrad wurden hergestellt und hinsichtlich ihrer Eignung als Polymerelektrolyte in der Direkt-Methanol-Brennstoffzelle getestet.

Block copolymers are commercially significant and fundamentally interesting class of polymeric materials. The ability to undergo interfacial thermodynamics-controlled microphase separation from a completely disordered state in the melt to a specifically defined ordered structure through self-organization makes the block copolymers based materials unique. Block copolymer are strongly replacing many of the commercially available polymers due to their unique microstructure and properties. The most practical interests of block copolymers lie in the area of thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs). The objective of the present thesis work is to developing novel roots for enhancing the physical and mechanical properties in block copolymer and multigraft copolymers. Initially the properties are tailored by controlling chemical architecture at synthesis level and by selective blending at production level. This gives an easy access for improvement of the material properties and this is one of my major tasks in the present research modules. Further the block copolymer based TPEs are cross-linked in presence of electron beam (EB) radiation for developing materials with superior properties. The electron beam radiation has the ability to alter material parameters at molecular level for enhancing the macroscopic properties. The desirable physical and chemical properties can be easily attained by varying the radiation beam parameters. In addition to that, controlling the material at nanometer scale is one of the greatest challenges for current nanocomposite research. In elastomeric materials it is very prominent to fill the rubber matrix with nano particles from carbon or silica by melt mixing technique for enhancing the material properties. Other than conventional melt mixing technique, sol–gel processing is also a versatile technique, which making it possible to produce a wide variety of materials and to provide existing materials with novel properties. A combination of in situ sol-gel reaction with electron beam cross-linking in TPEs from triblock copolymer has been demonstrated for the first time as one of the novel nanocomposite system in this work. The main advantage of this system lies in controlling the material behaviour by finely tuning the size of silica nano particle generated inside TPE during in situ sol-gel reaction. Finally, the various roots employed for enhancing the material behaviour in block copolymers in the above research module were secussfully employed on super elastic multigraft copolymers for improving their strength withour sacrificing the super elastic nature.

Les micelles complexes de polyions, ou « micelles PIC », formées par interaction électrostatique entre un copolymère à blocs double hydrophile neutre-ionique (DHBC) et un homopolyélectrolyte de charge opposée au DHBC possèdent des propriétés particulièrement intéressantes : solubilité des polyélectrolytes dans l'eau, stabilité des micelles, contrôle de l'association/dissociation micellaire par divers stimuli (pH, force ionique, irradiation lumineuse…). Dans cette thèse, les propriétés physico-chimiques des micelles PIC de type DHBC neutre-cationique/homopolymère anionique et DHBC neutre-anionique/homopolyélectrolyte cationique ont été étudiées en solution aqueuse en vue de leur utilisation comme agent structurant des matériaux siliciques organisés à l'échelle nanométrique. La gamme de pH de formation des micelles PIC, la concentration micellaire critique et le nombre d'agrégation des micelles ont été déterminés pour chacun des systèmes étudiés. Nous avons montré que la formation des micelles suit un mécanisme coopératif qui dépend de la taille de l'homopolymère. Par ailleurs, nous avons proposé une voie originale de formation des micelles PIC photoinduite, basée sur une modification du pH suite à l'irradiation d'une molécule photochrome. Les études concernant l'utilisation des micelles PIC comme agent structurant des matériaux nous ont permis de montrer que la morphologie (nanoparticulaire, massif) et la structure des matériaux (lamellaire, vermiculaire) peuvent être contrôlés par divers paramètres, tels que la concentration en masse du système DHBC/homopolyélectrolyte/précurseur de silice, la teneur en précurseur de silice et le rapport entre les fonctions cationique et anionique des polyélectrolytes. Le lavage des matériaux sous des conditions douces (à l'eau) permet de récupérer l'agent structurant. / Polyion complex micelles, or "PIC micelles", formed by electrostatic interaction between a neutral-ionic double hydrophilic block copolymer (DHBC) and an oppositely charged homopolyelectrolyte possess interesting properties: solubility of the polyelectrolytes in water, stability of micelles, control of the micellar association / dissociation by various stimuli (pH, ionic strength, light irradiation ...). In this thesis, the physico-chemical properties of PIC micelles of neutral-cationic DHBC/ anionic homopolymer and neutral-anionic DHBC/cationic homopolymer were studied in aqueous solution for use as structuring agents of silica-based organized nanomaterials. The pH range of PIC micelle formation, the critical micelle concentration and aggregation number of micelles were determined for each studied system. We have shown that the formation of micelles follows a cooperative mechanism which depends on the size of the homopolymer. Furthermore, we proposed an original way of photoinduced PIC micelle formation, based on a pH change after irradiation of a photochromic molecule. The studies on the PIC micelles as structuring agents of materials have shown that the morphology (nanoparticular, bulk) and the material structure (lamellar, vermicular) can be controlled by various parameters, such as the mass concentration of the DHBC / homopolyelectrolyte / silica precursor system, the content of the silica precursor and the ratio between the functions of the cationic and anionic polyelectrolytes. Finally, the template was removed by washing the hybrid materials under soft conditions in water.

Die in Blockcopolymeren beobachtete Mikrophasenseparation ermöglicht die Herstellung von periodischen Strukturen mit einer charakteristische Länge kleiner 100 nm. In der vorliegenden Arbeit wurden dünne Blockcopolymerfilme als Template zur Herstellung von metallischen, keramischen bzw. polymeren Nanodots untersucht. Derartige Nanodots könnten in magnetischen Datenspeichern, Superkondensatoren oder als photonische Kristalle eingesetzt werden. / The microphase seregation observed in block copolymers enables the generation of mesoscopic structures with characteristic lengths below 100 nm on a large scale. In this thesis, thin block copolymer films were investigated as templates for the synthesis of metallic, ceramic and polymeric nanodots. Such nanodots could be used in magnetic data storage devices, supercapacitors or photonic crystals.

This dissertation presents a new class of cancer diagnostic agents composed of quantum dots, magnetic nanoparticles, and amphiphilic polymers. The central hypothesis is that biocompatible, amphiphilic block copolymers can be used to create multinanoparticle micellar probes with imaging capabilities and surface properties optimized for applications in cancer diagnostics. To test this hypothesis, we investigated a number of different block copolymer structures and synthetic procedures. We found that use of a poly(methyl methacrylate)-poly(ethylene oxide) polymer in conjunction with a dialysis-based procedure produced uniform probes with excellent imaging properties. We also found that the probes formed using these materials and methods were surprisingly stable, even after incubation in whole human blood for 24 hrs at 37oC. As a corollary, we hypothesized that modified polymer structures could be used to introduce functional groups for use in linking the micellar probes to biological molecules. To test this hypothesis, we used a modified version of our synthetic procedure and utilized a novel method for studying nanoparticle binding to biological molecules in real time. We found that active amine groups could be added to the polymer shell using these methods, and that surface plasmon resonance could be used for studying nanoparticle binding. In sum, this dissertation makes several contributions to the field of cancer nanotechnology. First, we provide a new encapsulation procedure and nanostructure that has promising physical and biological properties. Secondly, we provide general strategies that can be used for future nanoprobe development. Finally, we demonstrate the capability of a new method for quantitative study of probe binding characteristics. Together, these contributions drive the field of cancer nanotechnology forward by providing a deeper understanding of the relationship between surface design and behavior in biological systems.

This thesis begins with a brief overview of supramolecular chemistry and selfassembly and simple examples derived from Nature that provide the motivation for the work presented here. The concept of a synthetic noncovalent toolbox is then introduced. The discussion then focuses more explicitly on side-chain and main-chain functionalized motifs and the methodologies employed in supramolecular polymer functionalization. The primary hypothesis of the thesis is that the combination of supramolecular strategies, ring-opening metathesis polymerization, and a well-understood toolbox of functionalities capable of noncovalent interactions, comprises a method for generating bioinspired materials. This hypothesis was tested by synthesizing unique functionalized supramolecular polymers that allowed for a detailed understanding of the orthogonality of noncovalent interactions and how such interactions can begin to mimic the complexity of functional biomaterials. The strategies and methods discussed in the synthesis of these bioinspired materials are divided into three chapters: (1) an exploration of the self-sorting phenomena between two non-complementary pairs of hydrogen bonds along polymer side-chains, (2) the extension of the self-sorting concept to include a metal coordination moiety, and (3) the side-chain functionalization strategies of chapters 2 and 3 in combination with the main-chain ROMP methodologies discussed in chapter 1 to form orthogonally self-assembled multifunctional block copolymers. The main results of this thesis include the results that multifunctional block copolymers can be fashioned via ROMP, functionalized in both the main- and side-chains, and self-assembled in an orthogonal fashion. In addition, these studies have found that self-sorting between pairs of non-complementary hydrogen bonding motifs can occur in supramolecular synthetic systems, that the interactions are extremely solvent dependent and that these interactions can result in unexpected phenomena. These results demonstrate the importance of a fully understood toolbox for the rapid development of supramolecular materials. The knowledge derived from this toolbox and presented in chapters 2, 3, and 4, allows for the careful selection of compounds for cleverly designed self-assembly materials inspired by Nature. Finally, conclusions are drawn to the success of the synthetic toolbox and the various strategies presented herein, and potential future directions are discussed.

La complexité et le coût croissant des processus nécessaires pour fabriquer des processeurs de plus en plus puissants de l'industrie microélectronique conduit à des structures de plus en plus petites. La photolithographie, technologie clé pour la nanostructuration, atteint aujourd'hui ses limites en termes de résolution. Des méthodes alternatives doivent donc être trouvées afin de continuer à produire des transistors plus efficaces, tout en gardant les coûts de production à un niveau raisonnable. La combinaison de la photolithographie classique et de l'auto-assemblage de copolymères à blocs (CPB) semble être une alternative prometteuse. Les copolymères à blocs ont la propriété de créer une séparation de phases à l'échelle du nanomètre grâce à l'incompatibilité chimique (décrite par le paramètre d'interaction chi) des blocs. De cette façon, lorsque cette séparation de phase est formée à la surface d’un substrat, des structures telles que des sphères, des cylindres ou des lamelles peuvent être obtenues et utilisées comme masques de gravure pour la nanostructuration. Le CPB le plus utilisé est le Polystyrène-Polyméthacrylate de méthyle (PS-PMMA), qui a été étudié pendant plus de 20 ans. Le PS-PMMA est un CPB de faible chi et ne peut pas atteindre des tailles de structure inférieure à 10nm. Plus l'incompatibilité des blocs (c’est-à-dire le chi) est importante, plus la taille des structures possibles est petite. Cette thèse traite principalement le système Polystyrène-Polydiméthylsiloxane (PS-PDMS), un CPB de haute valeur de chi, et évalue son éventuelle intégration dans l'industrie de la microélectronique. Des procédés ont été développés et optimisés en vue de leur utilisation future dans l'industrie. Un procédé de recuit commun pour les "high-chi" est le recuit sous vapeur de solvant (RVS), où la couche de CPB est exposée aux vapeurs de solvants. Les molécules de solvant gonflent le CPB et augment ainsi la mobilité des chaînes de polymère, permettant l’organisation des structures à grande échelle. Bien que ce procédé soit largement utilisé, il n'a jamais été rapporté sur des lignes de production à grande échelle. Le RVS est un processus très complexe qui est sensible à l'environnement et utilise souvent des solvants toxiques. Au cours de cette thèse, des mécanismes de RVS sont étudiés et des solvants non-toxiques qui sont compatibles avec l'environnement industriel sont proposés comme alternative. Une autre solution pour le recuit de CPBs "high-chi" sans solvant est également proposée. En formulant la solution de CPB avec des molécules de plastifiant, un auto-assemblage rapide avec un simple recuit thermique est possible. La faisabilité de ce processus a été démontrée sur des tranches de silicium de 300mm de diamètre. Le transfert des motifs par gravure est une étape importante et problématique en nanofabrication. Plus les tailles sont réduites, plus le facteur d'aspect est haut et le processus de gravure difficile. Des procédés de gravure par plasma différents, tous généralement utilisés dans les procédés de gravure industrielle, sont étudiés sur le matériau PS-PDMS. Des nanostructures de silicium de 10nm de large et des structures avec un rapport d'aspect de 6:1 ont été gravées avec succès. Enfin, un processus d’inclusion d’oxydes métalliques par simple dépôt par centrifugation a été démontré sur le polymère PS-PMMA. Ce BCP a l'avantage d’être un système bien connu grâce aux nombreux groupes de recherche qui s’y intéresse. Cependant, ses performances en gravure pour le transfert des motifs est peu satisfaisant à cause de la faible sélectivité entre les blocs PS et PMMA. Des procédés de gravure compliqués en plusieurs étapes doivent être effectués afin de transférer les motifs de manière satisfaisante. En introduisant des sels métalliques de manière sélective dans l'un des blocs, le contraste de gravure est considérablement augmenté et le transfert du motif peut être obtenu en une seule étape de gravure plasma. / The increasing cost and complexity of processes needed to keep up with the ever increasing demand for more powerful processors in the IC industry, lead to smaller and smaller feature sizes. Photolithography, once the workhorse for nanostructuration, reaches now its physical limits in terms of resolution. Other, alternative methods have thus to be found in order to continue producing more efficient integrated circuits, while keeping the production costs at a reasonable level. The combination of conventional photolithography and directed self-assembly of block copolymers (BCP) seems to be one promising alternative. Block copolymers have the unique property to phase separate at the nanometer scale driven by the chemical incompatibility (described by the Flory-Huggins interaction parameter chi) of the blocks. This way, when brought onto a substrate, structures like spheres, cylinders or lamellar can be obtained and used as etching masks for nanostructuration. Probably the most used BCP is Polystyrene-b-Polymethylmethacrylate (PS-b-PMMA), which has been studied for over 20 years. PS-b-PMMA is a so called “low-chi” BCP and can reach feature sizes not smaller than 10 nm. The higher the incompatibility of the blocks (i.e. the higher the chi-value), the smaller the obtainable feature size. This thesis deals primarily with “high-chi” Polystyrene-b-Polydimethylsiloxane (PS-b-PDMS) block copolymers and evaluates its possible integration into IC industry. Processes are developed and optimized in view of their future application in industry. A common annealing method for “high-χ” block copolymers is solvent vapor annealing (SVA), where the BCP layer is exposed to solvent vapors. Solvent molecules swell then the BCP layer, increasing the mobility of polymer chains and allowing long range ordering of the features. Although this method is widely used, it has never been reported on large scale production lines, for example on 300 mm wafers. The SVA is a very complex process that is sensitive to the environment and uses often toxic solvents. During this thesis, mechanisms of solvent vapor annealing are studied and safe solvents that are compatible with industrial environment are studied. Furthermore alternative solutions for annealing high-chi BCPs without solvents are proposed. Blending the BCP with plasticizer molecules, for example, leads to rapid self-assembly with thermal annealing and the feasibility of this process was shown on 300 mm wafers.Pattern transfer etching is a problematic step in IC nanostructuring. The smaller the features, the higher the aspect ratio, the more challenging the etching process. Different plasma etching procedures, all typically used in industrial gate etching processes, are studied on PS-b-PDMS. Challenging silicon features of down to 10 nm and aspect ratios of up to 6:1 are obtained.Finally, a simple spin-coating process of metal-oxide inclusion on widespread PS-b-PMMA is introduced in which etch selectivity of the BCP is highly increased. PS-b-PMMA has the advantage of being studied by numerous research groups and the understanding of the BCP is very advanced. However, its etching quality for pattern transfer are very poor as to the poor etch selectivity between PS and PMMA. Complicated multiple-step etching processes, where wet etching and dry etching are alternated have to be performed in order to transfer the patterns satisfactorily. By introducing metal salts selectively in one of the blocks, the etch contrast is considerably enhanced and the pattern transfer can be obtained in one single step of dry etching.

L’objective est d’améliorer l’activité photocatalytique de TiO2 sous irradiations UV et Visible. Pour contourner les limites de TiO2 intrinsèque nous envisageons une fabrication de nanocomposite plasmonique à base de nanofils de TiO2 périodiquement organisés et assemblés avec des nanoparticules plasmoniques. Pour la fabrication des nanofils de TiO2 mécaniquement stables, deux approches ont été réalisées. La première approche est basée sur la croissance sélective en phase vapeur, la deuxième approche consiste en l’utilisation d’un moule de membranes AAO et d’un dépôt de films conformes par ALD. En parallèle les films de TiO2déposés par ALD sont assemblés avec les nanoparticules plasmoniques d’or. Les différentes architectures de TiO2 sont valorisées par des tests photocatalytiques (UV et Visible) sur les polluants modèles. Une nouvelle approche de la fabrication des films mesoporeux d’H-TiO2 avec efficacité photocatalytique à la fois sous irradiation UV et Visible est développée. / The objective of this thesis is to improve the photo-response of well-known photocatalytic material such as TiO2, which is usually only active in the UV range. The basic idea is to assemble several approaches within one device to improve the photocatalytic properties: fabrication of periodically-organised TiO2 nanostructures and their assembly with plasmonic nanoparticles. Two fabrication strategies were investigated for these purposes. The first approach consists of selective vapour phase growth. The second approach implements the use of an AAO template. In parallel, TiO2 films deposited by ALD and assembled with plasmonic gold nanoparticles are investigated. The photocatalytic measurements on various TiO2 architectures were performed in both irradiation ranges UV and Vis. A new fabrication approach of mesoporous H-TiO2 films was developed giving promising results of photocatalytic efficiency improvement in both UV and Visible ranges.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The present work describes a methodology of controlled synthesis of block copolymers by one-pot reactions involving simultaneous RAFT and ROP processes mediated by a bifunctional compound which acts as a chain transfer agent (CTA) for the RAFT process and co-initiator of the ROP process. Reactions involving the RAFT of Styrene (St) and the ROP of ε-Caprolactone (ε-CL) were performed to obtain PS-b-PCL diblock copolymers. The catalysts Sn(Oct)2 and diphenyl phosphate (DPP) were evaluated in the ROP process. Diphenyl phosphate is the most appropriate for this kind of reaction, since Sn(Oct)2 proved to be avid when interacted with CTA, interfering antagonistically in the radical equilibrium of the RAFT process. The reactions were always controlled when DPP was used as a ROP catalyst, wherein copolymers with narrow molar mass distribution were obtained in the end. This methodology was employed in the synthesis of other linear and graft amphiphilic block copolymers, proving to be an excellent alternative for this purpose. Thermoresponsive copolymers based on Poly(oligo(ethylene glycol)methyl ether methacrylate) (POEGMA) and pH responsive based on Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) were obtained. The physicochemical properties of the copolymers were investigated in solid state as well as in solution, and the results are in total agreement with values reported in the literature. / Este trabalho descreve uma metodologia de síntese controlada de copolímeros em bloco por reações one-pot envolvendo processos RAFT e ROP simultâneos, mediados por um composto bifuncional que atua como agente de transferência de cadeia (CTA) para o processo RAFT e co-iniciador do processo ROP. Reações envolvendo a RAFT do estireno (St) e a ROP da ε-Caprolactona (ε-CL) foram realizadas para obter copolímeros dibloco PS-b-PCL. Os catalisadores Sn(Oct)2 e difenil fosfato (DPP) foram avaliados, sendo o último o mais apropriado para este tipo de reação, uma vez que Sn(Oct)2 mostrou-se ávido por interações com o CTA, interferindo antagonicamente no equilíbrio de radicais do processo RAFT. As reações mantiveram o caráter controlado quando DPP foi usado como catalisador ROP, sendo que ao final, copolímeros com estreita distribuição de massa molar foram obtidos. Esta metodologia foi empregada na síntese de outros copolímeros em bloco anfifílicos lineares e enxertados, se mostrando uma excelente alternativa para este propósito. Copolímeros termoresponsivos à base de Poli(metacrilato de poli(etilenoglicol)metil éter) (POEGMA) e pH responsivos à base de Poli(ácido acrílico) (PAA) foram obtidos. As propriedades físico-químicas dos copolímeros foram investigadas em estado sólido e em solução, e os resultados estão em plena concordância com valores relatados na literatura.