English Abstract

Neutron is a Marvelous Probe to See the Living Things as it is Alive. -Real Time & in-situ Observation on Living Polymerization-

Satoshi KOIZUMI
Strongly Correlated Supermolecule Group, Quantum Beam Science Directorate, Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA)Tokai-mura, Ibaraki-ken 319-1195, Japan
Nippon Gomu Kyokaishi,(2011),84(3),87-93 General Review in Japanese

Small-angle neutron scattering was employed in order to perform a real time & in-situ observation on a polymerization-induced self-assembly process in in-vivo or in-vitro systems ; precise living anionic polymerization of polystyrene-b-polyisoprene, pre-irradiation radical polymerization of polystyrene onto a polytetrafluoroethylene film, and microbial or enzymatic polymerization of cellulose. The aim of these studies is to clarify self-organizations of macromolecular assemblies appeared in open non-equilibrium systems, which are exposed to external energy and mass flows induced by chemical reactions. The open non-equilibrium systems are believed to be important for understanding pattern formations not only in materials processing in industry but also in living things. Small-angle scattering observed for the systems was investigated according to the methods established for condensed matter physics (fractal and computational analyses), bridging with synthetic chemistry and molecular biology.

Keywords: Polymerization-induced Self-assembly, Small-angle Neutron Scattering, Living Anionic Polymerization, Pre-irradiation, Mass Fractal, Surface Fractal, Microbial Cellulose