Preparation and photo-patterning characteristics of organic-inorganic hybrid thin film containing latent pigments by photo-acid-generator (PAG) and microwave irradiation have been investigated. The acrylic thin film modified with methoxysilane containing PAG and latent pigments was formed on glass or PET film, and then was irradiated with ultraviolet ray through photomask. The color-patterned film with 100～50 μm width was prepared by lift-off method using scotch tape. The developed method is effective for simply and efficiently forming a color filter film for display devices such as LCD and flexible display.

Polymer particles are widely used in various fields because of their high versatility and high convenience. Recently, porous polymer particles, which have pores on the surface and inside of the particles, have become very attractive due to their unprecedented character. However, preparation of porous polymer particles is complicated, so improvement of the process is receiving significant attention. This review describes the preparation of spherical polymer particles by a simple and low-energy method without any special equipment. In particular, the combination of a phase inversion from a W/O to O/W emulsion and solidification of emulsion droplets containing polymer caused by removing a water-soluble organic solvent is described. In addition, an example of application of porous polymer particles utilized in ink is shown. Finally, a modified phase-inversion method using poor solvent is applied as a simple way to prepare porous polymer particles, including a description of the phase separation in the spherical oil droplets of O/W emulsion and the particle morphology.

Nanoparticles-assembled films, in which chemically cross-linked polymer nanoparticles are regularly arranged, were obtained by solvent-casting method. After immersing this non-colored transparent film in liquid acrylic monomer, the film revealed clear structural color. By subsequent polymerization of the acrylic monomer into polymeric matrix, the nanoparticle-assembled film and its structural color were successfully immobilized in the rubber-like matrix. Thus obtained structural colored elastomer revealed strain-responsive color changing behavior, i.e., the film’s color changed to shorter wavelength one by uniaxial stretching deformation. The color wavelength was found to proportionally decrease with decreasing film thickness. The color changing mechanism of the structural colored elastomer was investigated.

For the purpose of expressing the spectral reflection spectrum of “beautiful skin” with inorganic fluorescent material and putting it into practical use as a novel cosmetic ingredient, a red phosphor of manganese doped magnesium titanate (Mg₂TiO₄: Mn⁴⁺), a green phosphor of fluorescent zinc oxide (ZnO), and a blue phosphor of cerium doped calcium phosphate (Ca₄(PO₄)₂O: Ce³⁺) were synthesized. By blending these phosphors at the optimum ratio, we succeeded in expressing white light emission similar to the spectral reflection spectrum of “beautiful skin”. In this paper, we introduce physicochemical properties of each phosphor and luminescence characteristics when it is actually incorporated into cosmetics.

Recently nanoparticle materials have attracted increased attention in biomedical fields. In particular, dramatic developments in cellular imaging and drug delivery system (DDS) have been realised by employing nanoparticles with fluorescence loading and stimuli-responsive functionalities. In this article, we review the current development status of these nanoparticles and show our work on the preparation of polyethyleneimine (PEI)-coated poly(lactic acid) (PLA) fluorescent biodegradable nanoparticles for efficient intracellular delivery and cellular imaging.