Nanoscopic visualization of cross‐linking density in polymer networks with diarylethene photoswitches

The degree of crosslinking plays an essential role in understanding the correlation between structure and properties of microgels. A cross-linker containing a diarylethene photoswitch allowed us to determine the distribution of cross-linkers in a poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) microgel synthesized by precipitation polymerization. Its distribution is significantly different from the distribution of the overall polymer density as determined by static light scattering.

E. Siemes, O. Nevskyi, D. Sysoiev, S. K. Turnhoff, A. Oppermann, T. Huhn, W. Richtering and D. Wöll

Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2018, 57, DOI: 10.1002/anie.201807741