Polymers and Molecular Aggregates: Advanced Molecular Self-Assemblies

Molecular aggregates and advanced molecular self-assemblies of polymers are some of the hot topics of research these days. The term molecular aggregates refers to structures containing long chains that are formed by molecular self-assembly through non-covalent interactions i.e., hydrogen bonding, dipole-dipole interactions, π–π interactions, hydrophobic forces, etc. The properties of the resulting molecular aggregate strongly depend on the type of interactions employed within it. On the other hand, advanced molecular self-assemblies include the process of self-assembling components into complex and advanced structures due to interactions of molecules. Molecular aggregates and advanced molecular self-assemblies of polymers have opened new windows to synthesize new polymers and complexes with varying structures and properties through the process of self-assembly that can be utilized in a number of applications. The upper hand of such aggregates and self-assemblies over other structures can be explained in terms of control over the structure, stability, biocompatibility, etc. During the synthesis of complexes and composites using advanced molecular self-assembly techniques, both synthetic and natural polymers can be utilized e.g., in the case of polymer-peptide complexes, synthetic polymers can also be utilized. These molecular aggregates of polymers have enormous applications in the fields of biomedicine, sensing, coating, additive manufacturing, tissue engineering, artificial muscles, gene therapy, electronic materials, energy storage, advanced optics, catalysis, etc. This chapter provides an overview of polymers and molecular aggregates-advanced molecular self-assemblies.