Novel Generation of Liquid Crystalline Photo‐Actuators Based on Stretched Porous Polyethylene Films

Abstract

The preparation of photo-actuators based on stretched porous polyethylene and an azobenzene-containing liquid crystalline polymer network is reported for the first time. It is revealed that this kind of photo-actuator possesses the following advantages: the lack of a need for using aligning coatings and cells preparation, high deformation of the actuator and its complete reversibility, good mechanical properties, and relatively low cost of fabrication. In addition some kinetic and thermodynamic features of the bending and unbending processes have been studied.

Technology for Creation and Detailed Analysis of Polymer Composites with Uniform Distribution of Quantum Dots and Liquid Crystals

“…Our research team was actively involved in the development [13][14][15][17][18][19][20][21][22] of methods for characterization [16] of devices with similar structure. In the course of the study, some possibilities of photo-and electro-manipulation by circularly polarized fluorescence were demonstrated and a new approach to the introduction of high concentrations of QDs in a cholesteric liquid crystal (LC) matrix was developed.…”

“…Earlier we published some papers [17][18][19][20][21][22], that described production of hybrid polymer structures with thin polyethylene (PE) porous films prepared according to [23]. One of the papers [24] described a simple but extremely reliable method to create composite films based on porous polypropylene (PP) and CdSe/ZnS QDs.…”

Reversible Photo Actuated Bulk Nanocomposite with Nematic Liquid Crystalline Elastomer Matrix

“…In previously reported LCE composite films, hetero polymer networks were utilized as the frame to form the alignment of liquid crystalline units, or as reinforcement phase to accomplish good mechanical properties [21,22]. Leveraging this approach, incorporating hetero skeleton structures can be an effective way of developing bulk LCE materials.…”

“…changes [4][5][6][7][8]. Owing to their characteristics as soft materials, currently, LCE materials have always been made in the forms with thin thickness, such as films [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24], fibers [25][26][27][28] or applied as surface coating [29]. However, materials with thin thickness have limitations in forming mechanical actuators, and many actuation functions need to be realized using thick materials, such as bulk materials.…”

Liquid crystalline side-chain triblock copolymers consisting of a nematic central subblock edged by photochromic azobenzene-containing fragments: their synthesis, structure and photooptical behaviour

“…Liquid crystalline (LC) azobenzene-containing polymers belong to such materials capable of providing a fast response to the light action through a reversible photoinduced E-Z isomerization of azobenzene (Azo) chromophore accompanied by large changes occuring of its molecular size, shape, and polarity [1][2][3] . These structural changes may essentially influence on wettability, 4,5 phase transitions, [6][7][8][9] thin films contracting, [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17] and surface modification [18][19][20] of polymers. Under irradiation by linearly polarized light the Azo chromophores are known to orient preferentially in the direction perpendicular to the polarization plane of the excitation light (Weigert effect 21 ).…”