Solution Properties of Fluorinated Bottlebrush Polymers Revealed by Neutron and X-Ray Scatterings*

Bottlebrush polymers are densely grafted polymers with long side-chains attached to a linear polymeric backbone. Their unusual structures endow them with a number of unique properties. Despite many studies of bottlebrushes that have been reported so far, their structure–property relationships are still far from understood. In this contribution, we present the solution properties of fluorinated bottlebrush polymers in different solovents (including tetrahydrofuran, toluene) by small angle neutron and X-ray scatterings, dilute solution viscosity. The results indicate that the conformations of these bottlebrush polymers depend on the size of the side chain, the concentrations of the solutions. These findings provide key information towards the design of architecturally tailored fluorinated polymers with desirable properties.