Correlating Thermodynamic Assembly to Functional and Structural Performance of Polymeric Systems by Comprehensive Analysis of Neutron Scattering

Small angle scattering is often used to determine the size and shape of polymeric materials, but more thorough analysis of the scattering from multi-component polymer systems provides interfacial surface area, average domain size, and importantly, phase composition. For instance, polyimide aerogels (PIA) saturated with ionic liquids are promising materials as robust electrolytes for next generation batteries. Careful analysis of SANS data from PIA/ionic liquid constructs show that the ionic liquid penetrates the polyimide skeleton. This unexpected structure clearly impacts charge transport and therefore performance of the aerogel as a battery component. This mixing behavior must be more fully understood to rationally utilize these promising materials in devices. We will also present examples of how similar analyses of scattering data provide crucial insight into the correlation of thermodynamic structure and performance in energy harvesting nanocomposites, the relationship between structure and dynamics in all-polymer nanocomposites, and the impact of deposition conditions on the lateral and vertical phase separation in polymer blend thin films.