Abstract
High density liquid crystalline (LC) polymer brushes with side chain LC azobenzene were synthesized via surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization. LC phase transition behavior was investigated by in situ UV-visible absorption spectroscopy and grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering (GI-SAXS). The free LC polymer chains in a spincast film exhibited three distinct thermal transitions, glass phase-smectic C (SmC)-smectic A (SmA)-isotropic, which correspond to the phase change behavior in the bulk state. On the other hand, the brush film only exhibited the SmA phase in the LC temperature range and the SmA-SmC phase transition was inhibited. This fact indicates that the LC phase transition behavior in the LC polymer brush is different from that in the free LC polymer of the spincast film. The high density grafted polymer brush structure constrains the mobility of the main chains, which impedes the tilt of mesogenic side chains.
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