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Polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals (PDLC) films were prepared from ultraviolet (UV) irradiation‐induced polymerization of the photopolymerizable monomers in photopolymerizable monomers/nematic liquid crystal (LC) mixtures. The effects of the composition of the mixtures, the curing temperature, and the UV light intensity on the microstructure of the polymer network in the PDLC films were investigated. Furthermore, the effects of the microstructures on the light scattering properties of the PDLC films in the wavelength region of 300–2500 nm were studied experimentally and theoretically based on the combination of three kinds of classical light scattering theories: the Rayleigh‐Gans (RG) approach, the anomalous diffraction (AD) approach, and the geometrical optics (GO) approach. It was found that the sizes of LC domain in PDLC films increased with the increase of the LC content as well as the decrease of the UV curing intensity, while increased at first and then decreased with the increase of the curing temperature. Moreover, smaller LC domain sizes could exhibit strong scattering properties in a smaller VIS wavelength region and the transmittance in NIR region (especially in the wavelength range of 1300–2500 nm) obviously decreased with the increasing sizes of LC domain. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 46: 2090–2099, 2008

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A chiral nematic liquid crystal (N*-LC)/chiral ionic liquid (CIL) composite with unique electro-optical characteristics was prepared and filled into a planar treated cell. When an electric field was applied to the cell, the anions and the cations of CIL moved towards the anode and the cathode of the power supply, respectively, thus forming a density gradient of the chiral groups, which resulted in wideband reflection. By adjusting the intensity of the electric field, the reflection bandwidth can be controlled accurately and reversibly. Moreover, the electric field-induced states can be memorized after the applied electric field is turned off. The reflective properties of the composite are investigated in the visible and near-infrared region, respectively. Additionally, the changes of the reflection bandwidths with the intensity and the applied time of the electric field were also investigated. From scanning electron microscopy (SEM) investigations, the mechanism of the electrically controllable reflection was demonstrated. Potential applications of the composite are related to reflective, color electronic paper (E-paper) and smart reflective windows for the solar light management.

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