Communication: Light driven remote control of microgels’ size in the presence of photosensitive surfactant: Complete phase diagram
- Here we report on a light triggered remote control of microgel size in the presence of photosensitive surfactant. The hydrophobic tail of the cationic surfactant contains azobenzene group that undergoes a reversible photo-isomerization reaction from a trans-to a cis-state accompanied by a change in the hydrophobicity of the surfactant. We have investigated light assisted behaviour and the complex formation of the microgels with azobenzene containing surfactant over the broad concentrational range starting far below and exceeding several times of the critical micelle concentration (CMC). At small surfactant concentration in solution (far below CMC), the surfactant in the trans-state accommodates within the microgel causing its compaction, while the cis-isomer desorbs out of microgel resulting in its swelling. The process of the microgel size change can be described as swelling on UV irradiation (trans-cis isomerization) and shrinking on irradiation with blue light (cis-trans isomerization). However, at the surfactant concentrationsHere we report on a light triggered remote control of microgel size in the presence of photosensitive surfactant. The hydrophobic tail of the cationic surfactant contains azobenzene group that undergoes a reversible photo-isomerization reaction from a trans-to a cis-state accompanied by a change in the hydrophobicity of the surfactant. We have investigated light assisted behaviour and the complex formation of the microgels with azobenzene containing surfactant over the broad concentrational range starting far below and exceeding several times of the critical micelle concentration (CMC). At small surfactant concentration in solution (far below CMC), the surfactant in the trans-state accommodates within the microgel causing its compaction, while the cis-isomer desorbs out of microgel resulting in its swelling. The process of the microgel size change can be described as swelling on UV irradiation (trans-cis isomerization) and shrinking on irradiation with blue light (cis-trans isomerization). However, at the surfactant concentrations larger than CMC, the opposite behaviour is observed: the microgel swells on blue irradiation and shrinks during exposure to UV light. We explain this behaviour theoretically taking into account isomer dependent micellization of surfactant within the microgels. Published by AIP Publishing.…
Author details: | Selina SchimkaGND, Yulia D. Gordievskaya, Nino Lomadze, Maren Lehmann, Regine von KlitzingORCiDGND, Artem M. RumyantsevORCiD, Elena Yu. Kramarenko, Svetlana SanterORCiDGND |
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DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4986143 |
ISSN: | 0021-9606 |
ISSN: | 1089-7690 |
Pubmed ID: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28734286 |
Title of parent work (English): | The journal of chemical physics : bridges a gap between journals of physics and journals of chemistr |
Publisher: | American Institute of Physics |
Place of publishing: | Melville |
Publication type: | Article |
Language: | English |
Year of first publication: | 2017 |
Publication year: | 2017 |
Release date: | 2020/04/20 |
Volume: | 147 |
Number of pages: | 5 |
Funding institution: | International Max Planck Research School on Multiscale Bio-Systems, Potsdam; German-Russian Interdisciplinary Science Center, Germany; Russian Foundation for Basic Research; DFG [KL 1165/12] |
Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Physik und Astronomie |
Peer review: | Referiert |