Preparation of monodisperse polystyrene microspheres and optical performance of its diffusive‐agent application

Abstract

Abstract— Two monodisperse polystyrene microspheres, 2.76 and 9.25 μm in diameter, were prepared by dispersion polymerization in an ethanol/iso‐propanol/water media. 2,2′‐azobis(isobutyronitrile) (AIBN) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) were utilized as the initiator and steric stabilizer, respectively. Optical properties including total transmittance (T%) and transmittance haze (H%) were determined when these two monodisperse polystyrene microspheres were applied as diffusive agents. This paper mainly discusses (1) different particle‐size effects and its hybrid behavior, (2) different thicknesses for the diffusion‐layer effect, and (3) the effects of diffusion‐layer arrangement and direction of incident light on the total transmittance (T%) and transmittance haze (H%).