The types of polymers available vary from commodity polymers such as polyethylene, polypropylene, and poly(vinyl chloride), to conductive and light-emitting polymers for advanced technological applications, to natural polymers such as proteins. Polymers are assembled from individual building blocks known as monomers. The wide variety of properties that are available from polymeric materials originates in the large number of available monomers, the ability to combine monomers into copolymers, and the ability to combine polymers with inorganic materials and form composite materials.
The polymer research at the Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Technion, encompasses synthesizing novel polymers; developing innovative polymer processing techniques for particular applications; characterizing the molecular structure, morphology, and properties using state-of-the-art equipment; and elucidating the synthesis-structure-processing-properties relationships.
Polymer-related research topics at the Department of Materials Engineering, Technion, include:
- Porous Polymers
- Light Emitting Polymers
- Nanocomposites
- Surface Modification and Adhesion
- Polymeric Precursors for Functional Ceramics
- Electron Transfer from Photoexcited Polymers
- Energy Transfer in Conjugated Polymers