失穩分解相分離所形成的雙連續結構在應用上有非常大的潛力，過去的研究中，在理論與實驗方面我們已經對此相分離過程有非常深入的了解，然而並沒有一個有效的方法能穩定雙連續結構，更遑論將此結構應用到材料設計中。

在二元相分離系統中引入第三相成分，例如：奈米粒子、奈米碳管、石墨烯等添加劑在近年來被認為能夠減緩，甚至停止相分離結構的粗化，其中最受矚目的系統為「雙連續界面堵塞乳膠凝膠（Bicontinuous interfacially jammed emulsion gels, Bijels）」。此外，添加劑也被使用在許多高分子複合材料中，雖然與 Bijels 不同的地方在於添加劑並不限定在界面上聚集，但對添加劑造成的效應之研究不僅能幫助我們理解和控制複合材料的性質，更能反過來加深我們對相分離機制的了解。

在此研究中，我們嘗試在聚乙二醇/聚乙二醇-丙二醇共聚合物混合物（Poly(ethylene glycol)/Poly(ethylene glycol-ran-propylene glycol), PEG/RAN）中加入自行合成的二氧化矽奈米粒子，並以自行架設的小角度可見光散射（Small Angle Light Scattering, SALS）研究相分離動力學在加入奈米粒子前後的影響。我們的研究結果發現，加入奈米粒子後，在不同相分離溫度出現不同的動力學機制，並在相對低溫的條件觀察到結構演化停止的現象。

The bicontinuous structure developed from spinodal decomposition (SD) has great application potential such as battery materials, biomedical tissue engineering and composite plastic materials. As a consequence, SD in polymer binary blends has been highly interested and thoroughly researched for decades. However, so far there is no any efficient way to stabilize such bicontinuous structure in polymer blends and the addition of the third phase, such as surfactants or nanoparticles which are amphiphilic to the two phases, seems to be an answer.

In this study, silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) synthesized by ourselves were added into Poly(ethylene glycol)/ Poly(ethylene glycol-ran-propylene glycol) binary phase-separating system (PEG/RAN). The difference in structural evolution and kinetic behavior of PEG/RAN and PEG/RAN/SiNPs were observed by phase contrast microscope (PCM) and time-resolved small angel light scattering (SALS). The growth exponent of the bicontinuous structure can be determined by SALS, allowing us to distinguish the effect of SiNPs.

1. Flory, P. J. Principles of Polymer Chemistry; Cornell University, Press: New York, 1953.
2. Rubinstein, M.; Colby, R. H. Polymer Physics; Oxford University Press: New York, 2003.
3. Strobl, G. R. The Physics of Polymers; Springer Verlag: Berlin, 2007.
4. Strobl, G. R., Bendler, J. T., Kambour, R. P., and Shultz, A. R., Macromolecules, 1986, 19, 2683-2689.
5. Balsara, N. P., Physical Properties of Polymers Handbook; Mark, J. E., Ed.; AIP Press, 1996.
6. Thomson, J. A., Schurtenberger, P., Thurston, G. M., and Benedek, G. B., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 1987, 84, 7079-7083.
7. Binder, K., Phase Transformations in Materials; Kostorz, G., Ed.; Wiley-VCH: New York, 2001.
8. Blundell, S., Magnetism in Condensed Matter; Oxford University Press: New York, 2001.
9. Cahn, J. W., and Hilliard, J. E., The Journal of chemical physics, 1958, 28, 258-267.
10. Cahn, J. W., On Spinodal Decomposition and The 1967 Institute of Metals Lecture, Spinodal Decomposition, In The Selected Works of John W. Cahn (eds W.C. Carter and W.C. Johnson), 1998.
11. Hashimoto, T., Itakura, M., and Hasegawa, H., The Journal of chemical physics, 1986, 85, 6118-6128.
12. Hashimoto, T., Itakura, M., & Shimidzu, N., The Journal of chemical physics, 1986, 85, 6773-6786.
13. Binks, B. P., Colloidal Particles at Liquid Interfaces, Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 2006.
14. Ramsden, W., Proc. R. Soc. Lond., 1904, 72, 156–164
15. Pickering, S. U., J. Chem. Soc., 1907, 91, 2001-2021
16. Herzig, E., White, K., Schofield, A., Poon, W. C. K., Clegg, P. S., Nature Mater., 2007, 6, 966–971.
17. Cates, M. E., Clegg, P. S., Soft Matter, 2008, 4, 2132-2138.
18. Vermant, J., Cioccolo, G., Golapan Nair, K., Moldenaers, P., Rheol. Acta., 2004, 43, 529–538.
19. Bai, L., Fruehwirth, J. W., Cheng, X., and Macosko, C. W., Soft Matter, 2015, 11, 5282-5293
20. Chung, H. J., Ohno, K., Fukuda, T., and Composto, R. J., Nano Letters, 2005, 5, 1878-1882
21. Chung, H. J., Ohno, K., Fukuda, T., and Composto, R. J., Macromolecules, 2007, 40, 384-388.
22. Gam, S., Corlu, A., Chung, H. J., Ohno, K., Hore, M. J., Composto, R. J., Soft Matter, 2011, 7, 7262-7268.
23. Chung, H. J., Kim, J., Ohno, K., Composto, R. J., ACS Macro Letters, 2012, 1, 252-256.
24. H.-J. Chung, A. Taubert, R. D. Deshmukh1 and R. J. Composto
25. Chung, H. J., Taubert, A., Deshmukh, R. D., and Composto, R. J., Europhysics Letters, 2004, 68, 219.
26. Ginzburg, V. V., Macromolecules, 2005, 38, 2362-2367.
27. Zhang, R., Lee, B., Bockstaller, M. R., Kumar, S. K., Stafford, C. M., Douglas, J. F., Raghavan, D., and Karim, A., Macromolecules, 2016, 49, 3965-3974.
28. Stöber, W., Fink, A., Bohn, E., J. Colloid Interface Sci., 1968, 26, 62-69.
29. Belton, D.J., Deschaume, O. and Perry, C.C., The FEBS Journal, 2012, 279, 1710-1720.
30. Kistler, S. S., J. Phys. Chem., 1932, 36, 52–64.
31. Nose, T., Polymer, 1995, 36, 2243-2248.
32. To, K., Phys. Rev. E, 2001, 63, 026108.
33. van Krevelen, D. W., Nijenhuis, te, K., Properties of Polymers, 4th ed., Elsevier, 2009.
34. Imhof, A., Megens, M., Engelberts, J. J., de Lang, D. T. N., Sprik, R., and Vos, W. L., J. Phys. Chem. B, 1999, 103, 1408–1415.
35. Reeves, M., Brown, A. T., Schofield, A. B., Cates, M. E., and Thijssen, J. H. J., Phys. Rev. E, 2015, 92, 032308.
36. Bergna, H. E., The Colloid Chemistry of Silica, ACS, 1994.
37. Niu, S., Yan, H., Chen, Z., Du, Y., Huang, W., Baiab, L., and Lv, Q., RSC Adv., 2016, 6, 106742-106753.
38. Liu, C. C., and Maciel, G. E., J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1996, 118, 21, 5103–5119.
39. Haukka, S., and Root, A., J. Phys. Chem., 1994, 98, 1695–1703.
40. Hsu, D. Y., Chou, C. M., Chuang, C. Y., and Hong, P. D., ACS Macro Lett., 2015, 4, 1341–1345.
41. Nakanishi, H., Fisher, M. E., J. Chem. Phys., 1983, 78, 3279.
42. Lifshitz, I. M., and Slyozov, V. V., Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solids, 1961, 19, 35-50.
43. Wagner, C., Zeitschrift für Elektrochemie, 1961, 65, 581-591.
44. Binder, K., and Stauffer, D., Phys. Rev. Lett., 1974, 33, 1006.
45. Siggia, E. D., Phys. Rev. A, 1979, 20, 595.
46. Chan, C. K., Goldburg, W. I., Phys. Rev. Lett., 1987, 58, 674.
47. Tanaka, H., Phys. Rev. E, 1996, 54, 1709.
48. Bates, F. S., Wiltzius, P., J. Chem. Phys., 1989, 91, 3258.
49. Porod, G., Kolloid Zeit., 1951, 124, 83
50. Yeung, C., Phys. Rev. Lett., 1988, 61, 1135.
51. Ohta, T., Nozaki, H., preprint.