Sunlight-Driven Smart Windows by Means of Photoisomerization of Chiral Azobenzene

Abstract

We prepared a chiral azobenzene molecule, which absorbs visible light and undergoes trans-cis isomerization. The change of molecular shape of this azobenzene creates different HTPs. We introduced the chiral azobenzene and a nonphotochromic chiral compound that induces the opposite helical structure into nematic liquid crystals, and fabricated the sunlight-driven smart window that exhibits high transparency in the initial state and shows optical switching to light-scattering state.