Temperature-responsive and multi-responsive grafted polymer brushes with transitions based on critical solution temperature: synthesis, properties, and applications

Temperature responsivity of polymer brushes may be driven by different mechanisms, from which the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) is the most famous one. The using of the grafted temperature-responsive polymer brushes based on LCST opens numerous opportunities for fabrication of “smart” or responsive surfaces. In this review, we try to join information on thermoresponsive and multi-responsive grafted polymer brushes with transitions based on LCST. The overwhelming majority of previously reported temperature-responsive grafted polymer brush coatings were based on PNIPAM and POEGMA, despite the fact that a wide range of other thermoresponsive polymers demonstrate similar properties. In this work, we not only give the detailed account for fabrication, mechanisms of action, and applications of well-known PNIPAM- and POEGMA-grafted brush coatings but also point to other types of thermoresponsive grafted brushes.