The Essential Handbook of Polymer Terms and Attributes

227 Topological Polymers

DOI: 10.1201/9781003161318-227

Topological polymers may refer to a polymeric molecule that possesses unique spatial features, such as linear, branched, or cyclic architectures. It could also refer to polymer networks that exhibit distinct topologies owing to special crosslinkers.

Topological polymers include branched polymers such as “star” polymers, “H-shaped” polymers, “super H-shaped” polymers, “pom-pom shaped” polymers, and “comb polymers” and “dendrimers”; “ring” polymers such as cyclic, multicyclic, and cyclic-branched combined polymers; “8-shaped” polymers; and “tadpole” polymers. Catenanes, rotaxanes, and knots are another class of topologically unique polymers.

Applications:

Topological structures, along ...