Ion transport in helical-helical polypeptide polymerized ionic liquid block copolymers.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 40069217.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-025-57784-9 and PMC identifier 11897142.
- Licence recorded as CC BY-NC-ND.
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Abstract
Helical-helical polypeptide polymerized ionic liquid block copolymers (PPIL BCPs) are synthesized to investigate the role of helical structure on self-assembly and ionic conductivity. PPIL BCPs, consisting of a cationic polypeptide (PTPLG) with bis(trifluoromethane sulfonimide) (TFSI) counterion and varying lengths connected to a length-fixed neutral poly-(γ-benzyl-<sub>L</sub>-glutamate) (PBLG) block, exhibit stable helical conformations with minimal glass transition (T<sub>g</sub>) variation. Here, we show that increasing PIL composition leads to a transition from poorly ordered to highly ordered lamellar (LAM) structures with the highest PIL content BCP forming a bilayer LAM structure with close-packed helices. This morphology yields a 1.5 order of magnitude higher T<sub>g</sub>- and volume fraction-normalized ionic conductivity and a morphology factor f > 0.8 compared to less ordered BCPs with f < 0.05 and f = 2/3 for ideal lamellae. These results highlight the critical role of helical structure in optimizing ion transport, offering a design strategy for high-performance solid electrolytes.