PB29 Creation of (Polymer/Liquid Crystal) Composite Systems with Steep Electro-Optical Response

Abstract

(Polymer/liquid crystal : LC) composite films consisting of a continuous LC phase embedded in a three-dimensional network of a polymer matrix were prepared by a photopolymerization-induced phase separation method. Photopolymerization rate is one of the important factors for controlling the mesh size of the polymer network. The time dependences of the polymerization and viscoelasicity were evaluated by FT-IR spectroscopy and plate rheometer under UV irradiation. The order of the polymerization rate among the samples was in good agreement with that of the viscosity change during polymerization. The drastic increase of the viscosity for (mono-acrylate / di-vinylether / LC) systems were formed to occur in the late stage of polymerization, which might be a cause of the resultant large mesh size of polymer network and the excellent steepness of lighttransmittance vs. applied voltage curve.