Our paper “Block Copolymer Nanocomposites under Confinement: Effect on Frustrated Phases” has been published in ACS journal Macromolecules (impact factor 6.057). The publication can be found here.

The authors are Javier Diaz, Marco Pinna, Cullen Breen, Andrei Zvelindovsky and Ignacio Pagonabarraga from the University of Lincoln in UK and the University of Barcelona in Span. The publication contains some results obtained during 4^th year project carried out in the School of Mathematics and Physics by Cullen Breen, an MPhys student (now our alumni) and it is the first paper co-authored by our student as a result of the final year MPhys project.

Abstract: Block copolymer melts are capable of controlling the location of nanoparticles due to their ability to self-assemble into ordered nanoscopic structures. Thin films offer additional control due to the confinement and surface selectivity. Systematic mesoscopic simulations are used to study the phase behaviour of block copolymer nanocomposites under confinement, showing that nanoparticles can modify the phase behaviour and orientation of block copolymers, while segregating toward specific regions of the block copolymer structure. Furthermore, nanoparticles are found located in specific features of the block copolymer morphology. Additionally, nanoparticles can alleviate the frustration and induce phase transitions away from the perforated lamellar morphology.