| Living radical polymerization (LRP) chemistries allow efficient grafting approaches that offer both temporal and spatial control over grafted chains when combined with photoinitiated processes. Previous research dealing with controlled radical polymerization methods has focused on using LRP chemistry to design bulk and surface initiated polymer chains with defined chain lengths, composition, and molecular weight. Despite these advances, only limited progress has been made using LRP-based surface chemistries for applications related to microfluidics, biosensing, and investigating cell-surface interactions.; To further investigate the impact of LRP chemistry on these areas, approaches were developed pertaining to the characterization and application of LRP chemistry as a controlled surface modification platform for covalently grafting polymer chains from a variety of polymeric substrates. Kinetic and chemical characterization of this platform was specifically achieved using a variety of experimental approaches to investigate surface functionalization with a range of conventional acrylic monomers. Also, fundamental studies analyzing the impact of design elements such as graft composition, orientation, and spacing on surface reactivity and sensing were also explored. Experimental techniques and results validate the impact LRP chemistry has on chemical applications pertaining to fluid flow, pH sensing, and controlling surface charge. Further, to establish the role LRP-based grafting has on biological applications, bioconjugation techniques were used to synthesize photopolymerizable proteins that are useful in designing graft architectures that influence a variety of biological processes. Ultimately, this research uniquely highlights the influence that LRP chemistry has on antigen detection, chemical sensing, cell-surface interactions, and designing a microfluidic fabrication technique with covalently attached polymer layers and an integrated surface modification platform. |
