Polymer Colloids

Dear Colleagues,

Functional polymers possess combined physical, chemical and mechanical properties and functionalities taking advantage of their conductive, optical, electronic and biomedical features. Some functional polymers also reveal stimuli responsive properties that are subject to change upon exposure to external stimuli such as temperature, pH, and light. Perturbation of local environment can lead to change in polymer conformation, structure, and aggregated states that render them be used as smart materials. Polymer colloids allow further expansion of applications of functional polymers as they can be easily processed and adopted for conjugation with a variety of biomolecules. Hierarchical self-assemblies comprised of polymer colloids show applications as photonic materials with tunability simply by changing the size of the colloids. Recent studies also suggest that nanoscaled polymer colloids have similar application potentials as semiconducting quantum dots. In recent years, polymer colloids have emerged as one of the most promising materials due to their size and morphology -dependent properties, and the feasibility for chemical modification that allows exploration of emergent phenomena and commercial applications.

In view of the recent developments in polymer colloids, this specific issue solicits papers relating to the synthesis, processing, self-assembly and applications of polymer colloids and hybrid composites. The topical subjects to be addressed include: micro- and nanoemulsion, polymer complexes, polymer composites, smart materials, chemical modifications, bioconjugates, and correlation between colloid structure and functionality.

Dr. Hsing-Lin Wang
Prof. Dr. Ping Xu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.