INITIATED CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION OF VINYL POLYMERS FOR THE ENCAPSULATION OF PARTICLES

摘要

One aspect of the present invention relates to an all-dry encapsulation method that enables well-defined polymers to be applied around particles of sizes down to the nanoscale. In certain embodiments, the methods are modified forms of initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) using a thermally-initiated radical polymerization to create conformal coatings around individual particles while avoiding agglomeration. The present invention also enables the coating of particle surfaces with a range of functional groups via direct incorporation of the functionality into the monomers used or indirectly through a subsequent modification of the surface of a coated particle. In certain embodiments, the method produces high quality functional polymer coatings.