Ink-jet Printing Polymers and Polymer Libraries Using Micropipettes

A study is presented on ink‐jet printing polymers, aiming at library generation for combinatorial material science applications, using (optimized) micropipettes. Solvents were successfully ink‐jet printed, up to 160 mPa s viscosity. Printability of polymer solutions decreases strongly with $\overline M _{\rm w}$ and polymer concentration, due to elastic stresses originating from elongational flow in the pipette nozzle. The feasibility of ink‐jet printing to generate arrays of polymer dots and films was demonstrated. An array of square films is shown that was created by printing a solution containing polydisperse polystyrene in acetophenone and 0.1% disperse red 1 to improve the contrast.