Polymer blends organic/inorganic composite materials

Polymer materials are ubiquitous in our daily life. They often consist of more than one species of polymers and, therefore, can be called multicomponent systems, for example, polymer blends and block copolymers. Because of the repulsive interaction between the constituent polymers, multicomponent polymer materials often show phase separation. Organic-inorganic composites are another class of polymer-based multicomponent materials that have attracted considerable interest from researchers because they often exhibit unexpected properties synergistically derived from the constituents. Nanometer-sized particulate fillers, for example, carbon black (CB) and silica (Si) nanoparticles, are known to form hybrids with organic polymers, which show a significant increase in their static and dynamic moduli, strength, and thermal and electrical conductivities. 

Most of the important applications of polymer-based nanocomposites have been realized in the optical area by the interesting association of the organic and inorganic components. Usually, optical composites are seen to be mixtures of a functional material and a processable matrix [49]. Optically functional parts include quantum-confined semiconductors, inorganic oxides, organic materials (small molecules), and polymers. The processable matrix materials are usually polymers but can also be copolymers, polymer blends, glass, or ceramics. 

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