Publications by authors named "Kazutoshi Yokomachi"

The specific deformation behavior of crystalline polymer films, namely unoriented crystallized isotactic polypropylene ( PP) films, was investigated under a multiaxial stress field. Changes in the aggregation structure of the films were investigated during the bulge deformation process using small-angle X-ray scattering, wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) measurements, and polarized high-speed-camera observations. The films had a thickness of approximately 10 μm.

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The local mechanical properties of crystalline polymer were evaluated using synchrotron radiation X-ray diffraction with 10 μm lateral resolution. A nonoriented isotactic polypropylene (iPP) film with isolated spherulites in a crystallized matrix was used as a model sample. In situ wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) measurement was performed on the iPP film using a microbeam synchrotron radiation X-ray under sinusoidal strain.

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Polymers with a perylenediimide (PDI) side chain (PAc12PDI) consist of two kinds of crystalline structures with various types of orientations in a thin film. Understanding the population of the microcrystalline structure and its orientation along the thickness is strongly desired. Grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray diffraction (GIWAXD) measurements with hard X-rays, which are generally chosen as λ = 0.

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It is well-known that a mixture of isotactic and syndiotactic polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) forms a stereocomplex consisting of a multihelical structure in which an isotactic chain is surrounded by a syndiotactic chain. Here, we report the basic structure of the stereocomplex formed when the syndiotactic PMMA chains are tethered to a silicon substrate and form a high-density polymer brush. The influence of geometric confinement was investigated by preparing the high-density polymer brushes on a flat and spherical substrate.

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It is desirable to establish a method for evaluating mechanical properties, such as modulus and strength, of micrometer and sub-micrometer thick polymer films. Bulge tests, where bulge deformation is imposed on films by the pressure of an inert gas, are suitable for satisfying this demand. However, very few studies on polymer films exist in the literature.

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