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Authors
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Chakraborty, S.; Chatterjee, S.; Singh, N. D. P.; Lederer, A.; Geisler, M.; Li, Q.; Al-Hussein, M.; Voit, B.; Singha, N. K.
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Title
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Mechanophoric 3-arm star functional block copolymer based on rhodamine derivative
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Date
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01.01.2026
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Number
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0
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Abstract
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This study presents a mechanoresponsive star-shaped BCP synthesized using a 3-arm-rhodamine-based ATRP initiator. The star rhodamine mechanophore was employed to construct a 3-arm star poly(butyl acrylate)-b-poly(methyl methacrylate) (PBA-b-PMMA) BCP, alongside random star copolymers and a linear BCP for comparison. Structural characterization via NMR, SEC, and FT-IR confirmed the successful synthesis, while DSC, AFM, and SAXS analyses revealed distinct phase separation in the BCP structures, which results in enhanced mechanical strength and features of thermoplastic elastomers in the materials. Interestingly, the synthesized mechanoresponsive tri-arm star and bi-arm linear architectures in both block and random copolymer configurations exhibited a switch-off state in solution but transitioned to a “switch-on” state in the film form due to internal strain-induced mechanophoric activation. Once activated in the film state, the fluorescence intensity increases with increasing stretching, indicating progressive mechanophore activation under mechanical stress, however, with a complete and precise peak shift is only observed for the star BCP architecture. This allows, uniquely in the block copolymers architecture with the mechanophoric unit in the core, a precise determination of additional stress on the material after processing. The study provides new insight into the mechanochemical activation of rhodamine-based systems and highlights the role of molecular architecture and processing state in governing mechanoresponse.
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Publisher
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Wiley
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Wikidata
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Citation
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Macromolecular Materials and Engineering 311 (2026) e00414
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DOI
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https://doi.org/10.1002/mame.202500414
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Tags
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