Hierarchical Structure on Nanofiber via Combination of Electrospinning and Polymer Crystallization

We report the formation of hierarchically ordered polymer nanofiber structures, named as nano fiber shish kebabs (NFSKs), by combining electrospinning and controlled polymer crystallization methods. We have proved that it is a general method that can be applied to a number of polymers, both homopolymer and block copolymers.Electrospun poly caprolactone (PCL) nanofibers serve as the shish and a secondary polymer (PCL homopolymer or PCL-related block copolymers) is decorated on the nanofiber in the form of single crystal lamellae by either an incubation (slow crystallization), or a solvent evaporation (fast crystallization) method. This hierarchical architecture is found potential application as a platform for incorporating inorganic nanoparticles into nanoscale polymer fibers in an ordered fashion.