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Polymer Solution Lab
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The lab uses scattering methods to clarify the shapes and assemblies of polymers in solution.
AboutAbout the lab
Unraveling the shape and assembly of polymers in solution
The Polymer Solution Lab studies the conformations that polymers adopt in solution, the aggregates formed by self-assembly, and phase separation of solutions.
Polymers in solution can adopt diverse conformations, and because of this conformational freedom they show distinctive properties not seen in low-molecular-weight compounds. The lab investigates their behavior from a physical chemistry perspective.
Using scattering methods such as small-angle X-ray scattering and light scattering together with spectroscopy, the lab aims to quantitatively clarify structures and physical properties, from isolated polymer chains to aggregates and nanocomposites.
Key terms
- Small-angle X-ray scattering
- A method that shines X-rays on a sample and examines nanoscale structure from how they scatter at small angles
- Phase separation
- A phenomenon in which a solution separates into two phases with different properties
- Micelle
- A structure formed when molecules with both hydrophilic and hydrophobic parts assemble in water
NewsLab news
Paper by Prof. Terao and colleagues published in Biomacromolecules
Paper by Associate Professor Takahashi and colleagues published in Physical Review Letters
Paper by Associate Professor Takahashi and colleagues published in Macromolecules
Doctoral student receives an Excellent On-Demand Presentation Award at the 75th Annual Meeting of the Society of Polymer Science, Japan
Associate Professor Takahashi selected for Polymer Journal's Rising Stars in Polymer Science 2024
ResearchResearch themes
Polymers in solution take diverse molecular conformations, and their high degree of freedom gives them distinctive properties not seen in low-molecular-weight compounds. The lab investigates molecular conformations, complex structures such as micelles, and phase separation of solutions from a physical chemistry perspective.
*Illustrative imageHow Polysaccharide Shape Changes with Backbone Linkage
The lab studied pullulan derivatives in tetrahydrofuran and evaluated chain stiffness. It found that there are almost no intramolecular hydrogen bonds, and that the derivatives do not form the rigid helical structure seen in amylose derivatives with similar substituents.
*Illustrative imageSize-Uniform Polysaccharide Micelles
The lab studied micelles in aqueous solution of pullulan modified with decylsuccinic anhydride. They form linearly connected unit micelles of uniform particle size, and the size distribution was found to be smaller than that of conventional derivatives with unsaturated alkyl chains.
*Illustrative imageStiffness and Branching of Arabinogalactans
The lab studied the solution conformations of three plant-derived polysaccharides, arabinogalactans, using small-angle X-ray scattering and dynamic light scattering. The linear one behaved as a flexible polymer, and the two branched ones were well described by a hyperbranched polymer model.
*Illustrative imageBuilding Assembled Structures During Polymerization
When a block copolymer is made in solution by polymerizing monomer B from the end of polymer A, choosing a combination in which B becomes insoluble as polymerization proceeds leads to self-assembly along with polymerization. At relatively high concentrations, various highly ordered microphase-separated structures formed, including a hexagonal close-packed structure that cannot be obtained by ordinary preparation methods.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Polymer Solution Lab consist of faculty, doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, and research students.As of 2026
- ProfessorKen Terao
- Associate ProfessorRintaro Takahashi
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Starch granules of potato01” Ganímedes / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- How Polysaccharide Shape Changes with Backbone Linkage: “219 Three Important Polysaccharides-01-es” OpenStax College / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Size-Uniform Polysaccharide Micelles: “Evanescent wave dynamic light scattering setup” Benoit Loppinet, Antje Larsen, Antonio Giuliani / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Stiffness and Branching of Arabinogalactans: “Gum Arabic” Tarig A. Eltom / CC BY 3.0 (cropped)
- Building Assembled Structures During Polymerization: “Surface of a tri-block copolymer (Septon 4055) imaged using an atomic force microscope.” Crosslink / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Polymer Physical Chemistry Lab): “Capillary rheometer 2” Cjp24 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Polymer Structural Science Lab): “Caulobacter crescentus CcrM” Jcaceresvergara / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Quantum Chemistry Lab): “B2H6 intrinsic bond orbital” Alicesu / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (Precision Polymer Science Lab): “Plastic pellets for injection molding” Teemeah / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
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