Benetzung mit Polymer-Lipid-Verbundmembranen und Funktionalisierung von Festkörpern

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Motomu Tanaka
• Subject Area: Condensed Matter Physics
• Term: from 1998 to 2005
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 5107186

The primary goal of this project is to anchor hydrophilic polysaccharides (c.f., dextran, hyaluronic acid, chitosan, etc.) onto homogeneous and laterally patterned functional surfaces of Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) films of 'hairy-rod' polymers. The swelling behavior of the polymer films (and of polymer / lipid composite in a later stage) is mainly studied by a recently developed imaging microellipsometry under controlled humidity conditions.The 'hairy-rod' LB films as 'functional platforms' enable (i) covalent anchoring of various biopolymers (receptors, enzymes) onto the surfaces, (ii) control of film thickness to optimize ellipsometric contrast, (iii) structuring of polymer films by photolithography, and (iv) functionalization by photochemical techniques. Adhesion of vesicles onto the structured surfaces is monitored by the reflection interference contrast microscopy (RICM)Main scientific goals are:(1) Estimation of intermolecular potentials of various biopolymers grafted onto 'hairy-rods' by measuring film thicknesses as a function of the chemical potential of H2O(2) Study of contact angles, shape of wetting droplets, and hysteresis on functional patterns(3) Measurement of adhension of lipid films (monolayer, bilayer, and vesicles) on structured polymer films as a model of cell-tissue interaction

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 1052: Benetzung und Strukturbildung an Grenzflächen