Synthesis and characterization of anisotropic magnetic hydrogels

Multiresponsive hydrogels are an interesting new class of materials. They offer the advantage, that they respond to different stimuli like temperature, pH and magnetic fields. By this they can change their properties which makes the hydrogels ideal candidates for many applications in the technical as well as medical field. Here we present the synthesis and characterization of hydrogels - micro- as well as macrogels - which consist of an iron oxide core, varying in phase and morphology, embedded in a thermoresponsive polymer, consisting of poly N-isopropylacrylamide. By using dynamic light scattering we investigated the thermoresponsive properties. In addition we were able to follow the formation of the macrogel by monitoring the shear viscosity.