Advanced Microscopy Reveals Twin Boundary Defect in Soft-Block Copolymer
Written by AZoMMay 20 2021
Using a sophisticated electron microscopy technique, researchers from Texas A&M University have uncovered a single microscopic defect, known as a “twin” in a soft-block copolymer, for the first time.
Edwin Thomas and his team have found a twin boundary defect in a soft polymer material having a double gyroid shape for the first time. Image Credit: Dharmesh Patel/Texas A&M Engineering.
This microscopic defect could be manipulated in the days to come to produce materials that have unique photonic and acoustic characteristics.
This defect is like a black swan—something special going on that isn’t typical. Although we chose a certain polymer for our study, I think the twin defect will be fairly universal across a bunch of similar soft matter systems, like oils, surfactants, biological materials, and natural polymers. Therefore, our findings will be valuable to diverse research across the soft matter field.