抄録
The Kerr effect for the isotropic phase of the (polymer/liquid crystal) composite system has been investigated. A mixture of poly(isobutyl methacrylate)(PiBMA) and 4-cyano-4'-heptylbipheny (7CB) were used to induce a concentration-induced isotropic phase. The thermal analysis revealed that the nematic-isotropic phase transition temperature(T_<NI>) of the (PiBIMA/7CB) composite system became lower with increasing the molar fraction of PiBMA. This corresponds to that the temperature range of the appearance of Kerr effect for the (PiBMA/7CB) composite system became wider than that for 7CB. The electro-optical switching based on the Kerr effect was observed for the isotropic phase (PiBMA/7CB) composite system. The rise and decay response times for the electro-optical switching decreased simultaneously with an increase in the fraction of PiBMA in the composite system.
