Recent Applications of Reversible Deactivation Radical Polymerization Techniques in Nanotechnology and Bio‐Nanoscience

ABSTRACT Since the past century's last decade, Reversible Deactivation Radical Polymerization (RDRP) techniques have revolutionized the field of polymer synthesis, providing tools for precise polymer synthesis while preserving the robustness of free‐radical polymerization chemistry. However, the full industrial impact of these techniques is still to be seen, although their applications in advanced technologies have been extensively explored in the scientific literature, especially in the fields of nanotechnology, self‐assembly, and biological and medical sciences. In this review, the literature on nanotechnology applications of the three main RDRP techniques is surveyed, classified, and discussed. The period considered in the review spans the last 10 years, providing a time perspective to better appreciate the impact of the surveyed literature. It was found that the group including biological‐medical applications had the highest number of citations, followed by silica modification and electronic, optical, and sensing applications. Also, a significant number of works dealing with intermediate applications that include the synthesis of special structures or synthesis techniques prior to a final application were found and discussed; for example, block and graft copolymers, emulsion polymerization, and polymerization‐induced self‐assembly (PISA). It is expected that biological‐medical applications will become high‐tech commercial applications in the pharmaceutical industry in the near future.