MICROPHASE SEPARATION IN TERNARY ABC BLOCK-COPOLYMERS - ORDERING CONTROL IN MOLTEN DIBLOCK AB COPOLYMERS BY ATTACHING A SHORT STRONGLY INTERACTING C-BLOCK

Some specific features of the microphase separation in molten ternary ABC triblock copolymers (in particular, modifications of the molten AB diblock copolymers by attaching a short third block C strongly incomp atible with both A and B blocks) are studied rigorously within the fra mework of the weak segragation approach. It is shown that via such a m odification one can control both the stability as to the microphase se paration transition (i.e., the corresponding spinodal temparatures) an d the smoothness of such a transition. Two modes of such modifications for every composition are studied in detail: (i) those resulting in t he minimal spinodal temperatures and (ii) those that result in the smo oth order-disorder transition at this composition. The corresponding d ependencies of the transition temperature and the periodicity of the o ccurring supercrystal structures are built and analyzed.