Light‐induced Electrical Effects in a Liquid Crystal BLM Containing TCNQ

Abstract

Abstract— The light‐induced capacitance changes and also both photovoltage and photocurrent under continuous illumination have been investigated in pigmented liquid crystal bilayer membranes (PBLM)‡ containing TCNQ as photosensitizer with Na2SO3 electron donor on one side and methylene blue electron acceptor on the other side. The results have shown that TCNQ in cyanobiphenyl membrane produces a unique photoactive BLM system in which all three main parameters (conductivity, capacity and voltage across the membrane) are in a wide range altered by the light. It is shown that a TCNQ‐cyanobiphenyl charge transfer complex is responsible for the observed photochanges. The possible mechanism of photoinduced electrical effects in this type of PBLM is discussed.