Polymer brushes by SI-PET-RAFT: Synthesis and applications

Polymer brush coatings have been used to tune interfacial properties for numerous applications, such as biomedical implants, biosensors, and in tissue engineering. In the past decade, photochemistry has emerged as a growing area in polymer chemistry. Using light to drive polymerization reactions has the advantage that it enables spatial and temporal control over the reaction. Surface-initiated photoinduced electron/energy transfer reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerization (SI-PET-RAFT) has emerged as an excellent technique for developing well-defined polymer brush coatings composed of various functional monomers. This compact review focuses on this highly versatile scalable synthesis technique for creating polymer brush coatings and the applications of these coatings.