Environmentally responsive photonic polymers

Heeswijk, Ellen P. A. van; Kragt, Augustinus J. J.; Grossiord, Nadia; Schenning, Albertus P. H. J.

doi:10.1039/c8cc09672d

Cited by 82 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 79 publications

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“…Stimuli‐responsive photonic materials that are able to change their color are appealing for applications such as sensors, energy‐saving windows, and security labels . Using the cholesteric liquid crystalline (Ch‐LC) phase, structural coloration causes reflection of a specific wavelength similar to Bragg reflectors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[23] Stimuli-responsive photonic materials that are able to change their color are appealing for applications such as sensors, energy-saving windows, and security labels. [24][25][26][27] Using the cholesteric liquid crystalline (Ch-LC) phase, structural coloration causes reflection of a specific wavelength similar to Bragg reflectors. These photonic materials are well known for their ability to respond to environmental factors such as temperature and humidity.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Tunable Photonic Materials via Monitoring Step‐Growth Polymerization Kinetics by Structural Colors

Heeswijk

Yang

Grossiord

et al. 2019

Adv Funct Materials

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The functional and responsive properties of elastomeric materials highly depend on crosslink density and molecular weight between crosslinks. However, tedious analytical steps are needed to obtain polymer network structure–property relationships. In this article, an in situ structure–property characterization method is reported by monitoring the structural color change in a photonic elastomeric material. The photonic materials are prepared in a two‐step polymerization process. First, linear chain extension occurs via Michael addition. Second, photopolymerization ensures crosslinking, resulting in the formation of an elastomeric photonic network. During the first step, the step‐growth polymer process can be monitored by following the photonic reflection band redshift, allowing to program the molecular weight between the crosslinks. During network formation, the crosslink density, chain length between crosslinks, and the colors are “frozen in.” These processes can be locally controlled creating both single‐layered multicolor patterned and broadband reflective coatings at room temperature. The scalability of the coating process is further demonstrated by using a gravure printing technique. Additionally, the final coatings are made responsive toward specific solvents and temperature. Here the modulus, response, and color of the coating are controlled by tuning the crosslink density and molecular weight between crosslinks of the elastomeric material.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Tunable Photonic Materials via Monitoring Step‐Growth Polymerization Kinetics by Structural Colors

Heeswijk

Yang

Grossiord

et al. 2019

Adv Funct Materials

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“…SMP coatings that change both topography and color are appealing for a range of reconfigurable nanophotonic devices for optical data storage, photovoltaics, and optical sensors, as well as smart adhesives, biosurfaces, and battery‐free optical time‐analyte indicators . Regular surface topographies exhibiting structural colors have been fabricated in SMPs by top‐down methods including locally induced surface wrinkling, nanoimprint lithography, compression molding, or templating via microspheres .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To circumvent the cumbersome top‐down nanoforming steps to generate the structural color, photonic SMP coatings generated by bottom‐up self‐assembly have also been employed . For example, shape memory photonic films have been produced from core–interlayer–shell polymer microspheres that form opal structures .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…cholesteric liquid crystalline (CLC)) phases are of particular interest for their periodic helical structures which lead to the selective and incident‐angle‐dependent reflection of light, resulting in iridescent structural colors . CLC coatings have been reported that respond to stimuli including heat, light, and humidity . In addition, CLC coatings have been reported that simultaneously change surface topography and color in a reversible manner …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Photonic Shape Memory Chiral Nematic Polymer Coatings with Changing Surface Topography and Color

Nickmans

Heijden

Schenning

2019

Advanced Optical Materials

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optical time-analyte indicators. [21,22] Regular surface topographies exhibiting structural colors have been fabricated in SMPs by top-down methods including locally induced surface wrinkling, [23] nanoimprint lithography, [24,25] compression molding, [26] or templating via microspheres. [27] In these examples, hot pressing of the surface features results in a temporary flattened and colorless state, which is reversible upon heating. [24][25][26][27] To circumvent the cumbersome topdown nanoforming steps to generate the structural color, photonic SMP coatings generated by bottom-up self-assembly have also been employed. [17,28,29] For example, shape memory photonic films have been produced from core-interlayer-shell polymer microspheres that form opal structures. [30][31][32] Alternatively porous inverse-opal SMPs have been templated by silica colloids. [33] Capillary pressure-induced "cold" programming of these materials results in a disordered temporary state consisting of collapsed pores and an arbitrarily roughened surface, which can be recovered by pressure, heat, organic vapors, solvents, and microwave radiation. [34][35][36][37][38][39] Unfortunately, the fabrication of such SMP coatings is still hampered by the lack of facile methods and materials. [40] Reactive liquid crystalline materials are exciting from this perspective since they form nanostructured phases via selfassembly, and can be easily processed via photopolymerization [41][42][43][44] to fabricate polymeric coatings. [45][46][47][48][49] Chiral nematic liquid crystalline (a.k.a. cholesteric liquid crystalline (CLC)) phases are of particular interest for their periodic helical structures which lead to the selective and incident-angledependent reflection of light, resulting in iridescent structural colors. [50] CLC coatings have been reported that respond to stimuli including heat, light, and humidity. [17,[51][52][53][54][55][56][57] In addition, CLC coatings have been reported that simultaneously change surface topography and color in a reversible manner. [41,55] Recently, our group reported that irreversible thermoresponsive photonic coatings can be fabricated based on CLC polymer networks using a shape memory approach. [58,59] Indentation of a small area (≈1 mm 2 ) of the CLC film, at a temperature above the T g of the polymer network, resulted in a blue-shift of the reflection band through a reduction of the pitch of the cholesteric helix, which was fully recovered upon heating.We now report a new approach for the fabrication of shape memory photonic coatings that irreversibly change both topography and color. Polymeric CLC films with a red structural The fabrication of shape memory coatings that change both reflectivity and topography is hampered by the lack of facile methods and materials. Now, shape memory photonic coatings are fabricated by high-speed flexographic printing and UV-curing in air of a chiral nematic liquid crystal ink. Deformable polymeric films with a red reflection band and a smooth surface topography are obtained which...

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Mechano‐Optical Sensors Fabricated with Multilayered Liquid Crystal Elastomers Exhibiting Tunable Deformation Recovery

Hisano

Kimura

et al. 2021

Adv Funct Materials

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Advances in tuning the mechanoresponsive behavior of liquid crystal elastomers have facilitated the development of next‐generation applications such as reconfigurable photonic/electronic materials, energy‐harvesting devices, and flexible sensors. However, the molecular‐level control of mechanical responses remains difficult, with limited tunability achieved for recovery processes after stimulus removal. Herein, a design concept is proposed for facilely tuning the recovery of both the macroscopic deformation and molecular orientation change of liquid crystal elastomers using layered materials that exhibit the desired mechanoresponsive behavior. Changing the layering materials (a polydimethylsiloxane film with elastic response to a polymethylpenten film with plastic response) alters the relaxation time from <1 s to >6 months. To demonstrate this concept, highly sensitive, stretchable mechano‐optical sensors with fast and ultraslow recovery times are developed that enable an applied strain to be quantitatively detected in real time or memorized with high spatial resolution, even with a conventional camera. This material design concept for arbitrarily controlling the recovery response can provide a platform for stimuli‐responsive applications.

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Environmentally responsive photonic polymers

Abstract: This feature article focuses on photonic polymers that change colouration due to an environmental stimulus and highlights their industrial feasibility.

Cited by 82 publications

References 79 publications

Tunable Photonic Materials via Monitoring Step‐Growth Polymerization Kinetics by Structural Colors

Tunable Photonic Materials via Monitoring Step‐Growth Polymerization Kinetics by Structural Colors

Photonic Shape Memory Chiral Nematic Polymer Coatings with Changing Surface Topography and Color

Mechano‐Optical Sensors Fabricated with Multilayered Liquid Crystal Elastomers Exhibiting Tunable Deformation Recovery

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