Patent ID: 8088839

Claim:
A process of synthesizing a composite colloidal polymer-inorganic material, comprising the steps of: a) synthesizing a dispersion of polymer microgel particles in a liquid; b) treating said dispersion of polymer microgel particles to modify an interior of the polymer microgel particles to provide an effective concentration of ligands in the interior of the polymer microgel particles, the ligands being selected to form a complex with atoms of a metal, ions of the metal, or molecular moieties containing the metal in the interior of the polymer microparticle; c) adding atoms of the metal, ions of the metal, or molecular moieties containing the metal to the dispersion of polymer microgel particles under conditions suitable to facilitate uptake of the atoms of the metal, ions of the metal, or molecular moieties into the interior of the polymer microgel particles; d) exposing the dispersion of polymer microgel particles to a first effective agent which interacts with the atoms of the metal, ions of the metal, or molecular moieties in the interior of the polymer microgel particles to form nanoparticles in the interior of the polymer microgel particles, the nanoparticles being comprised of at least the metal, the effective concentration of ligands being selected to give nanoparticles with specified material properties; e) exposing the polymer microgel particles to a second effective agent which results in the polymer microgel particles expelling the liquid therefrom which causes the polymer microgel particles to contract in volume; and f) encapsulating the contracted polymer microgel particles with the nanoparticles in the interior thereof in a protective polymeric shell material, the protective polymeric shell material being effective to suppress interactions between the contracted polymer microgel particles and the liquid.