Evaluation of Mechano-Optical Properties of Chiral-Nematic Liquid Crystal Polymer Microparticles

Abstract

Chiral nematic liquid crystal polymers are renowned for their distinctive optical and mechanical properties. In this study, we synthesized monodisperse chiral nematic liquid crystal polymer particles using dispersion polymerization and investigated their optical characteristics, particularly their angular-independent reflection. We measured the shifts in reflection wavelength of these particles under applied pressure. Our results revealed that the reflectance wavelength shifted from red to blue as the molecular orientation changed with increasing pressure. Additionally, we confirmed the spatial resolution of these particles as sensing materials by evaluating strain distribution. These findings indicate the potential of chiral nematic liquid crystal polymer particles as effective materials for strain sensing applications.