The study of polystyrene sutface layer glass transition ny luminescent molecular probes

Producing of 2D ensembles of nanoparticles on polymer substrates is one of the key tasks in many fields of fundamental research and practical applications. A successful development of such nanocomposites is impossible without an intimate knowledge of polymer surface layer properties at a nanolevel. The glass transition process in a thin surface layer of polystyrene was studied in the present work by the method of luminescent molecular probes. A significant difference of polymer "surface" (T-g(s)) and "bulk" (T-g(b)) glass transition temperatures was proven. A strong dependence on the polymer molecular weight was found for the T-g(s) value and probe dye molecules' mobility. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.