@article{WangKaunePerlichetal.2010,
  author    = {Wang, Weijia and Kaune, Gunar and Perlich, Jan and Paradakis, Christine M. and Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle and Laschewsky, Andr{\´e} and Schlage, K. and R{\"o}hlsberger, Ralf and Roth, Stephan V. and Cubitt, Robert and M{\"u}ller-Buschbaum, Peter},
  title     = {Swelling and switching kinetics of gold coated end-capped poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) thin films},
  issn      = {0024-9297},
  doi       = {10.1021/Ma902637a},
  year      = {2010},
  abstract  = {Thin thermoresponsive hydrogel films of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) end-capped with n-butyltrithiocarbonate(nbc- PNIPAM) oil si I icon supports with a gold layer on top, causing an asymmetric confinement, are investigated. For two different gold layer thicknesses (nominally 0.4 and 5 rim), the swelling and switching kinetics are probed with in situ neutron reflectivity. With a temperature jump from 23 to 40 degrees C the film is switched from a swollen into a collapsed state. For the thin gold layer this switching is faster as compared to the thick gold layer. The switching is a two-step process of water release and a subsequent structural relaxation. fit swelling and deswelling cycles, aging of the films is probed. After five cycles, the film exhibits enhanced water storage capacity. Grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS) shows that these gold coated nbc-PNIPAM films do not age with respect to the inner structure but slightly roughen at the gold surface. As revealed by atomic force microscopy, the morphology of the gold layer is changed by the water uptake and release.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{ZhongMiMetwallietal.2018,
  author    = {Zhong, Qi and Mi, Lei and Metwalli, Ezzeldin and Biessmann, Lorenz and Philipp, Martine and Miasnikova, Anna and Laschewsky, Andre and Papadakis, Christine M. and Cubitt, Robert and Schwartzkopf, Matthias and Roth, Stephan V. and Wang, Jiping and M{\"u}ller-Buschbaum, Peter},
  title     = {Effect of chain architecture on the swelling and thermal response of star-shaped thermo-responsive (poly(methoxy diethylene glycol acrylate)-block-polystyrene)(3) block copolymer films},
  series = {Soft matter},
  volume    = {14},
  journal   = {Soft matter},
  number    = {31},
  publisher = {Royal Society of Chemistry},
  address   = {Cambridge},
  issn      = {1744-683X},
  doi       = {10.1039/c8sm00965a},
  pages     = {6582 -- 6594},
  year      = {2018},
  abstract  = {The effect of chain architecture on the swelling and thermal response of thin films obtained from an amphiphilic three-arm star-shaped thermo-responsive block copolymer poly(methoxy diethylene glycol acrylate)-block-polystyrene ((PMDEGA-b-PS)(3)) is investigated by in situ neutron reflectivity (NR) measurements. The PMDEGA and PS blocks are micro-phase separated with randomly distributed PS nanodomains. The (PMDEGA-b-PS)(3) films show a transition temperature (TT) at 33 degrees C in white light interferometry. The swelling capability of the (PMDEGA-b-PS)(3) films in a D2O vapor atmosphere is better than that of films from linear PS-b-PMDEGA-b-PS triblock copolymers, which can be attributed to the hydrophilic end groups and limited size of the PS blocks in (PMDEGA-b-PS)(3). However, the swelling kinetics of the as-prepared (PMDEGA-b-PS)(3) films and the response of the swollen film to a temperature change above the TT are significantly slower than that in the PS-b-PMDEGA-b-PS films, which may be related to the conformation restriction by the star-shape. Unlike in the PS-b-PMDEGA-b-PS films, the amount of residual D2O in the collapsed (PMDEGA-b-PS)(3) films depends on the final temperature. It decreases from (9.7 +/- 0.3)\% to (7.0 +/- 0.3)\% or (6.0 +/- 0.3)\% when the final temperatures are set to 35 degrees C, 45 degrees C and 50 degrees C, respectively. This temperature-dependent reduction of embedded D2O originates from the hindrance of chain conformation from the star-shaped chain architecture.},
  language  = {en}
}