Reflection methods for the study of polymer interfaces

✍ Scribed by David J. Walsh; Bryan B. Sauer; Julia S. Higgins; Marisa L. Fernandez

• Publisher: Society for Plastic Engineers
• Year: 1990
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 419 KB
• Volume: 30
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0032-3888
• DOI: 10.1002/pen.760301712

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

The direct study of polymer Interfaces is very difficult. Small angle scattering methods have been most successfully applied to block copolymer Interfaces where the morphology is well known. Other techniques such as electron microscopy, Rutherford back scattering, and forward recoil spectroscopy generally only give resolution of the order of 10 nm. Here we describe two techniques which have only recently been applied to polymer interfaces, neutron reflection, and spectro‐scopic ellipsometry. Both reflection techniques examine planar samples and give compositional information in the depth direction. Neutron reflection gives a resolution of 0.5 nm and spectroscopic ellipsometry may give better than 5 nm. We will describe experiments using neutron reflection which measure the inter‐facial thickness between two immiscible polymers and experiments using both techniques which measure the interdiffusion of miscible polymers. Other applications and limitations of the techniques will also be discussed.