The molar mass dependence of latex particle deformation

As a first step in the study of the molar mass dependence of film formation , the rate of deformation and the spreading of individually adsorbed latex particles has been measured under dry conditions using atomic force microsc opy. These data recorded at different temperatures and for particles with d ifferent molecular weights have been compared with glass transition tempera tures and minimum film formation temperatures. The preliminary results indi cate that the speed of the deformation process depends on both molar mass a nd temperature, while the maximum extend of spreading only shows a molar ma ss dependence close to Tg.