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Encyclopedia of Polymers and Composites pp 1–25Cite as

Atomic Force Microscopy Studies of Polymer Crystals: Nucleation, Growth, Annealing, and Melting

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Definition

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) permits the study of polymer crystallization, morphology, annealing and melting at high resolution and in situ. This chapter reviews AFM studies of polymer crystal nucleation and growth; growth features, including giant screw dislocations and lamellar deformation; and annealing and melting. In some cases, such as crystal nucleation and giant screw dislocations, these in situ AFM studies have confirmed conventional expectations. In other cases, such as lamellar twisting and crystal thickening, unexpected results have opened new questions.

Introduction

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is an unparalleled tool for observing temporal changes in polymer morphology. The development of devices that operate at elevated temperature has enabled the direct observation of polymer crystallization and melting, as well as structural changes occurring during the annealing of thin, metastable lamellar crystals. The interested reader is referred to reviews by Hobbs...

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Abbreviations

b:

shear displacement or strength of a screw dislocation

D:

diffusivity [m2s−1]

d:

film thickness

G:

growth rate of a crystal [m s−1]

lc :

lamellar crystal thickness

LLDPE:

poly(ethylene-co-hexene)

PBA-C8:

poly(bisphenol A octane ether)

PBS:

poly(butylene succinate)

PCL:

poly(ε-caprolactone)

PE:

polyethylene (high-density homopolymer)

PEO:

poly(ethylene oxide)

PHBHHx:

poly(R-3-hydroxybutyrate-co-R-3-hydroxyhexanoate)

PLA, PDLA, PLLA:

poly(lactic acid), poly(d-lactic acid), poly(l-lactic acid), poly(lactide), etc.

PP, iPP:

polypropylene, isotactic polypropylene

PS, iPS:

polystyrene, isotactic polystyrene

PVC:

poly(vinyl chloride)

PVDF:

poly(vinylidene fluoride)

SAN:

poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile)

Ta :

annealing temperature

Tc :

crystallization temperature

Tm :

melting temperature

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA

    Buckley Crist

  2. Department Chemical Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, 191716, USA

    Jerold M. Schultz

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  1. Buckley Crist
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  2. Jerold M. Schultz
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Correspondence to Buckley Crist .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee, Saharanpur, India

    Sanjay Palsule

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Crist, B., Schultz, J.M. (2013). Atomic Force Microscopy Studies of Polymer Crystals: Nucleation, Growth, Annealing, and Melting. In: Palsule, S. (eds) Encyclopedia of Polymers and Composites. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37179-0_23-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-37179-0_23-1

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  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-37179-0

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