Interfacial tension governs the formation of self-organized honeycomb-patterned polymer films

Hexagonally packed water droplets condensed on a polymer solution are potential templates for the formation of honeycomb-patterned porous polymer films. A small number of surface-active molecules is indispensable for the stabilization of water droplets during solvent evaporation. Biocompatible surfactants; e.g., phospholipids, are required for the fabrication of biodegradable honeycomb-patterned polymer films, which can be used as novel biomedical materials, mainly in vivo. Among various kinds of phospholipids, dioleoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE) has been reported to be the most suitable surfactant for the formation of honeycomb-patterned PLA films. Interfacial tension between a water droplet and the polymer solution is largely dependent on the chemical structure of the phospholipids. DOPE shows high interfacial tension, resulting in the stabilization of water droplets during solvent evaporation. Dierucoylphosphatidylcholine (DEPC) and dierucoylphosphatidylethanolamine (DEPE), both of which display high interfacial tension, were also found to be suitable biocompatible surfactants.