New method produces homogeneous polystyrene microparticles in a stable dispersion

Dispersions of polymer particles in a liquid phase (latexes) have many important applications in coatings technology, medical imaging, and cell biology. A French team of researchers have now developed a method, reported in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition, to produce stable polystyrene dispersions with unprecedentedly large and uniform particle sizes. Narrow size distributions are essential in many advanced technologies, but were previously difficult to produce photochemically.