Tracking the evolution of the morphology and stress distribution of SIS thermoplastic elastomers under tension using atomic force microscopy

Styrene-based ABA-type triblock copolymers and their blends are widely investigated thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs). The design of tough TPE materials with high strength and resilience requires further clarification of the relationship between microstructure and macroscopic properties of stretched samples. Here, we applied atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based quantitative nanomechanical mapping to study the deformation behavior of poly(styrene-