Effect of sample preparation on the glass‐transition of thin polystyrene films

AbstractWe have investigated the effect of sample preparation on the glass‐transition temperature (Tg) of thin films of polystyrene (PS). By preparing and measuring the glass‐transition temperature Tg of multilayered polymer films, we are able to assess the contribution of the spincoating process to the reduced Tg values often reported for thin PS films. We find that it is possible to determine a Tg even on the first heating cycle, and that by the third heating cycle (a total annealing time of 15 min at T = 393 K) the Tg value has reached a steady state. By comparing multilayered versus single layered films we find that the whole Tg depends only on the total film thickness, and not on the thickness of the individual layers. These results strongly suggest that the spincasting process does not contribute significantly to Tg reductions in thin polymer films. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 4503–4507, 2004

Effect of sample preparation on the glass‐transition of thin polystyrene films Journal Articles