Inhomogeneous dynamic nuclear polarization of protons in a lamella-forming diblock copolymer investigated by a small-angle neutron scattering method

By combining two methods of selective doping of paramagnetic species into a microdomain and small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), thespatially inhomogeneous proton polarizationcreated by dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) has been precisely evaluated. A lamella-forming diblock copolymer composed of polystyrene (PS) and polyisoprene (PI) block chains (PS-b-PI) was employed, the SANS profile of which clearly shows scattering peaks up to the third order due to interlamellar interference. As a source of electron spin for DNP, 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine 1-oxyl (TEMPO) was doped into one or other of the microdomains; samples with PS or PI microdomains selectively doped with TEMPO are designated PS.-b-PI and PS-b-PI., respectively. The SANS intensity at the first- and third-order peaks is well reproduced by assuming that the proton polarization is homogeneous throughout the sample, but that at the second-order peak cannot be explained by this assumption. This anomaly regarding the second-order peak was successfully explained by a model postulating that proton polarization in a doped microdomain decreases with increasing distance from the interface with a neighbouring doped microdomain. The decrease in proton polarization at the centre of a doped microdomain was estimated to be 0.07 (2) for PS-b-PI.and 0.05 (1) for PS.-b-PI, relative to constant proton polarization in a doped microdomain. The inhomogeneous proton polarization results from two competing dynamic processes,i.e.spin diffusion from doped to undoped microdomains, and spin lattice relaxation occurring on the pathway of proton spin diffusion.