Thermal control over the topology of cleavable polymers: From linear to hyperbranched structures

We found that the topology of cleavable polymer from linear to hyperbranched can be tuned simply by varying the polymerization temperature: linear polymers were produced at temperatures <= 40 degrees C, hyperbranched polymers were obtained at elevated temperatures (>= 48 degrees C); the degree of branching (DB) of hyperbranched polymers increased with the increase of temperature. Furthermore, the produced linear and hyperbranched polymers contain stimuli-sensitive disulfide bonds in the backbone that can be easily cleaved into small organic molecules in the presence of DTT.