Patterned surfaces in self-organized block copolymer films with hexagonally ordered microporous structures

A novel fabrication of the patterned surfaces in the polymer films was demonstrated by using the self-organizing character of the block copolymers of polystyrene-b-oligothiophenes and polystyrene-b-aromatic amide dendron. Hexagonally arranged open pores with a micrometer-size were spontaneously formed by casting the polymer solutions under a moist air flow. The amphiphilic character of the block copolymers played the crucial role as a surfactant to stabilize the inverse emulsion of water in the organic solvent, and subsequently the aggregated structure of the hydrophilic oligothiophene or aromatic amide dendron segments remained on the interiors of the micropores. The chemical composition on the top of the surface of the microporous films was characterized by energy-filtering transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM) or a time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometer (ToF-SIMS). The characterizations clearly indicated that the patterned surfaces in the self-organized block copolymer films with the hexagonally ordered microporous structures were fabricated in a single step.