Surface Engineering of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles by Biocompatible PPEGMA Polymer: Synthesis, Characterization, and Optical Property Studies

Abstract

The poly[poly(ethylene glycol) monomethacrylate] (PPEGMA) grafted ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) were successfully prepared using in situ free radical polymerization strategy. Initially, surface of ZnO NPs was modified by 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (TMSPMA), subsequently AIBN initiated copolymerization of PEGMA from ZnO NPs afforded well defined PPEGMA-g-ZnO nanocomposites. FT-IR and XPS confirmed the chemical grafting of polymer onto ZnO NPs. The XRD data suggested the zincite structure in the nanocomposites. The immobilization of polymer onto NPs was observed in SEM images. Thermal property was analyzed by TGA. The UV-vis and photoluminescence (PL) studies of the nanocomposites suggested an enhanced optical properties.

Keywords:

• Free radical polymerization
• optical properties
• surface modification
• ZnO nanoparticles

Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the Joint Program of Cooperation in Science and Technology through NRF grant funded by the MEST (No. 2011-0025680).