Lamella reorientation in thin films of a symmetric poly(l-lactic acid)-block-polystyrene upon crystallization at different temperatures

The thin films of a symmetric crystalline-coil diblock copolymer of poly(l-lactic acid) and polystyrene (PLLA-b-PS) formed lamellae parallel to the substrate surface in melt. When annealed at temperatures well above the glass transition temperature of PLLA block (TgPLLA), the PLLA chains started to crystallize, leading to reorientation of lamellae. Such reorientation behavior exhibited dependence on the correlation between the crystallization temperature (Tc), the glass transition temperature of PS (TgPS), the peak melting point of PLLA crystals (TmPLLA), and the end melting point of PLLA crystals (Tm,endPLLA). When annealed at (Tc=) 80 °C (Tc < TgPS < TODT, order-disorder transition temperature), 123 °C (TgPS < Tc < TmPLLA < TODT), 165 °C (TgPS < TmPLLA < Tc < Tm,endPLLA < TODT), the parallel lamellae became perpendicular to the substrate surface, exclusively starting at the edge of surface relief patterns. Meanwhile, the corresponding lamellar spacing was significantly enhanced. The PLLA crystallization between PS layers was hypothesized to account for the lamella reorientation during annealing. The crystallization, chain conformation, and possible chain folding mechanisms were discussed, based on detailed analysis of the lamellar structure before and after crystallization.