This SGER research will be directed to answering fundamental, scientific matters concerning the control of orientation of polymer molecules on surfaces and the chemical and physical properties of such surface-bound polymer layers. Specific questions upon which attention will be focused are: How can the directionality implicit in a surface be preserved in the orientation of a bound polymer at substantial distances from the underlying? What are the unique properties of such bound layers as contrasted with both the solution and solid (but not uniquely oriented) states? How are the properties of such materials altered by the presence of other molecules, and are such changes reversible, at if so, at what rate? This fundamental science program is intended to gather the necessary seed information upon which potential applications applications in optical switches and molecular sensors can be built.
