Transparent Hydrophobic Antimicrobial Coatings by In Situ Synthesis of Ag Nanoparticles in a Surface‐Grafted Amphiphilic Comb‐Copolymer

Preparation of a transparent, ultrathin, and hydrophobic surface coating consisting of an amphiphilic comb-copolymer monolayer incorporating in-situ-synthesized silver nanoparticles and exhibiting superior antibacterial properties is described. The presence of silver nanoparticles, their confinement to the polymer monolayer, and the morphology of the hybrid coating are evidenced by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, UV–vis spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. The coated glass substrates exhibit excellent antibacterial properties, effectively inhibiting the growth of both Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria of the strains Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively.