Reexamining the Emergence and Stability of the Square Cylinder Phase in Block Copolymers

Recently, a few AB-type multiblock copolymers have been successfully designed to form stable square cylinder phase based on self-consistent field theory (SCFT) calculations. The previous works only identify the stability region of the square phase but not analyzing its stability, which is closely related to the free-energy landscape. In this work, we have reexamined the stability of the square phase in B1A1B2A2B3 ${{{\rm B}}_{1}{{\rm A}}_{1}{{\rm B}}_{2}{{\rm A}}_{2}{{\rm B}}_{3}}$ linear pentablock and (B1AB2) 5 ${({{\rm B}}_{1}{\rm A}{{\rm B}}_{2}{)}_{5}}$ star triblock copolymers by drawing the free-energy landscape with respect to the two dimensions of a rectangular unit cell. Our results demonstrate that the square phase continuously transfers to the rectangular phase as the degree of packing frustration is gradually released. Moreover, the prolate contour lines of the free-energy landscape indicate the weak stability of the square phase in the B1A1B2A2B3 ${{{\rm B}}_{1}{{\rm A}}_{1}{{\rm B}}_{2}{{\rm A}}_{2}{{\rm B}}_{3}}$ copolymer. In contrast, the stability of the square phase is notably improved in the (B1AB2) 5 ${({{\rm B}}_{1}{\rm A}{{\rm B}}_{2}{)}_{5}}$ copolymer due to its enhanced concentration of bridging configurations. Our work sheds light on the understanding of the stability of the square cylinder phase in block copolymers. Accordingly, we propose some possible strategies for further designing new AB-type block copolymer systems to obtain more stable square phase.

Automated summary

Recently, stable square cylinder phases have been formed in a few AB-type multiblock copolymers based on self-consistent field theory calculations. In this work, the stability of the square phase in linear pentablock and star triblock copolymers was reexamined, and the free-energy landscape was analyzed. The results show a continuous transition from the square phase to the rectangular phase, and the stability of the square phase is improved in the star triblock copolymer.