Affiliation:
1. Institute for Molecules and Materials Radboud University Heyendaalseweg Nijmegen, 135 6525 AJ Nijmegen The Netherlands
Abstract
AbstractThe surface area of anisotropic polymeric assemblies is a critical parameter concerning their properties. However, it is still a grand challenge for traditional techniques to determine the surface area. Here, a molecular probe loading (MPL) method is developed to measure the surface area of anisotropic polymersomes in the shape of tube, disc, and stomatocyte. This method uses an amphiphilic molecular probe, comprising hydrophobic pyrene as the anchor and hydrophilic tetraethylene glycol (EG4) as the float. The surface area of spherical polymersomes determined by dynamic light scattering is quantitatively correlated with the loading amount of probes, allowing the calculation of the average separation distance between the loaded probes. With the separation distance, we successfully determine the surface area of anisotropic polymersomes by measuring the loading amount. We envision that the MPL method will assist in the real‐time surface area characterization, enabling the customization of functions.
Funder
H2020 European Research Council
H2020 Excellent Science
Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
Subject
General Chemistry,Catalysis