Related papers: Stimuli-responsive behavior of PNiPAm microgels un…
As a novel stimulus, we used high-frequency ultrasonic waves to provide the required energy for breaking hydrogen bonds between Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) and water molecules while the solution temperature maintains below the…
Temperature-sensitive hydrogels based on polymers such as poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) undergo a volume phase transition in response to changes in temperature. During this transition, distinct changes in both thermal and mechanical…
Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) is a temperature-responsive polymer that undergoes large volumetric deformations through a transition from a swollen to a collapsed state at the volume phase transition temperature (VPTT). Locally, these…
Thermoresponsive microgels are polymeric colloidal networks that can change their size in response to a temperature variation. This peculiar feature is driven by the nature of the solvent-polymer interactions, which triggers the so-called…
The role of electrostatics on the interfacial properties of polyelectrolyte microgels has been discussed controversially in the literature. It is not yet clear if, or how, Coulomb interactions affect their behavior under interfacial…
We synthesize thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) colloidal microgel particles of different stiffnesses by controlling the concentration of crosslinker in a one-pot synthesis method. We employ oscillatory rheology and…
A low-temperature dynamical transition has been reported in several proteins. We provide the first observation of a `protein-like' dynamical transition in nonbiological aqueous environments. To this aim we exploit the popular colloidal…
We report temperature-responsive soft composites of semiflexible biopolymer networks (fibrin) containing dispersed microgel colloidal particles of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (pNIPAM) that undergo a thermodynamically driven de-swelling…
Hypothesis: The peculiar swelling behaviour of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM)-based responsive microgels provides the possibility to tune both softness and volume fraction with temperature, making these systems of great interest for…
The structural characterization of microgels at interfaces is fundamental to understand both their 2D phase behavior and their role as stabilizers that enable emulsions to be broken on demand. However, this characterization is usually…
Superresolution microscopy has become a powerful tool to investigate the internal structure of complex colloidal and polymeric systems, such as microgels, at the nanometer scale. The ability to monitor microgels response to temperature…
We investigate the temperature dependent phase behaviour of mixtures of poly(Nisopropylacrylamide) (pNIPAM) microgel colloids and a triblock copolymer (PEO-PPO-PEO) surfactant, which undergoes micellisation. Gelation in these systems…
Microgels are soft microparticles that often exhibit thermoresponsiveness and feature a transformation at a critical temperature, referred to as the volume phase transition temperature. The question of whether this transformation occurs as…
Temperature-responsive properties of surface-attached poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) network films with well-controlled chemistry are investigated. The synthesis consists of cross-linking and grafting preformed ene-reactive polymer…
Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), PNIPAM, is a widely studied polymer, which serves as a key constituent of nanostructured soft materials with responsive properties. Upon increasing temperature the PNIPAM polymer chain undergoes a reversible…
Responsive microgels based on poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) exhibit peculiar behaviours due to the competition between the hydrophilic and hydrophobic interactions of the constituent networks. The interpenetration of poly-acrilic…
Responsive poly-N-isopropylacrylamide-based microgels are commonly used as model colloids with soft repulsive interactions. It has been shown that the microgel-microgel interaction in solution can be easily adjusted by varying the…
Poly-N-isopropylacrylamide (PNIPAM) is a thermoresponsive polymer, an essential building block of a large family of soft smart materials. In neat water it undergoes upon heating at $\approx$305K a phase transition from swollen to collapsed…
Hypotheses: Additives are commonly used to tune macromolecular conformational transitions. Among additives, trehalose is an excellent bioprotectant and among responsive polymers, PNIPAM is the most studied material. Nevertheless, their…
Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-based microgels are soft colloids undergoing a Volume Phase Transition (VPT) close to ambient temperature. Although widely employed for fundamental research and application purposes, the modifications of the…