Abstract
This chapter introduces the thermodynamics, or phase behavior, of binary mixtures of a flexible polymer and a rigid rod-like molecule. It describes the fundamentals of a nematic phase, based on the Onsager theory for a rigid rod. The chapter focuses on the phase separations of mixtures of a flexible polymer and a rigid rod-like molecule, or a low molecular weight liquid crystalline molecule, in a thermal equilibrium state. It describes theoretical models to describe phase behavior, combining the Flory-Huggins theory of isotropic mixing for polymer blends, Onsager theory, and Maier-Saupe model of a nematic phase. Binary mixtures of a flexible polymer and a rigid rod-like molecule play an important role in electro-optical devices, such as light shutters and displays. Based on time-dependent Landau-Ginzburg equations, the chapter considers the thermal instabilities of the phase separations and morphologies, where the interplay between orientation and concentration fluctuations is important.
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