CAREER: Dynamics in Nanostructured Polymer Materials (040722)

The PI's primary career goal is to develop a research and education program that significantly contributes to the understanding of nanostructured polymer materials (NPMs) by studying motion across a broad range of length and time scales. This will be achieved using the PI's expertise that includes both in-house and national laboratory experiments. Motion in NPMs, such as block copolymers, affects performance and durability in applications such as batteries, water purification, and carbon dioxide capture. The main research objective of this CAREER proposal is to measure dynamics in strongly segregated block copolymer membranes as a function of morphology, grain size, and mechanical contrast. A broad range of experimental techniques will be used including time-resolved spectroscopies, rheology, x-ray and neutron scattering. An expected outcome of this research effort is to improve fundamental understanding of the relationship between local motion within the nanostructure and application specific material properties, such as small molecule transport, mechanical strength, and aging.