Fabrication of Micropatterned Stimulus-Responsive Polymer-Brush 'Anemone'

A simple strategy to fabricate stimulus-responsive patterned PNIPAAM-brush microstructures ('anemones') is presented. The size of the microstructures can be adjusted by setting the composition of thiol and the contact pressure. We demonstrate that the patterned PNIPAAM-brush microstructures have a triggerable and reversible conformation transition, and can potentially be used as microcontainers to reversibly dock and release microparticles.