Fig. 5: Monitoring water uptake within PS and P3HT thin films via neutron liquid reflectometry. | Nature Communications

Fig. 5: Monitoring water uptake within PS and P3HT thin films via neutron liquid reflectometry.

From: SMART transfer method to directly compare the mechanical response of water-supported and free-standing ultrathin polymeric films

Fig. 5

a Sample loading with (1) spun cast composite film with PSS underlayer, (2) removal of film edge, (3) floating of film, (4) transfer into trough. b Illustration of NR experiment with film floating on the water surface. c Photograph of a 5 × 5 cm P3HT film of 36 nm in thickness anchored within the DI-water trough. d Reflectivity vs. wave vector for PS films of varying thickness. e PS SLD profile in Z-direction. Insert is of PS water uptake dependence on thickness. f Reflectivity vs. wave vector for P3HT films of varying thickness. g P3HT SLD profile in Z-direction. Insert is of P3HT water uptake dependence on thickness. The shaded regions corresponding to the sublayer and top layer represent the layers 1 and 2 depicted in Fig. 6.

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