One way to modify a surface and control or improve its properties is to grow polymer chains off the surface to form a "brush." One method for growing polymer brushes from surfaces- atom-transfer radical polymerization-can be controlled electrochemically, in that the process can be catalyzed by Cu~+ ions but not by Cu~(2+). Li et al. used this method to create gradients in the length of polymer brushes grown on a substrate modified with a suitable initiator.
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