Inversion of diblock copolymer micelles by selective solvents for conversion of gold nanopatterns

We report the creation of spherical and donut-like nanostructures by the inversion of diblock copolymers. We synthesized a diblock copolymer, consisting of one block which allows the synthesis of nanoparticles and the other block which is selectively removable. Using a selective solvent for each block, we produced two types of micelles, which have the inversed position of two blocks, that is, the core of the nanoparticle-synthesizable block and the corona of the removable block (~ 29 nm in diameter), and vice versa (~ 53 nm in diameter). Single layers of these two micelles on substrates were converted to spherical or donut-like nanostructures by selective elimination of the removable coronas or cores. Moreover, these nanostructures were employed as templates for the synthesis and arrangement of spherical nanoparticles (~ 24 nm) and their ring-like configuration in large area.