Self-assembled liquid-crystalline gels designed from the bottom up
Source abstract
Abstract
Liquid crystals are often combined with polymers to influence the liquid crystals' orientation and mechanical properties, but at the expense of reorientation speed or uniformity of alignment. We introduce a new method to create self-assembled nematic liquid-crystal gels using an ABA triblock copolymer with a side-group liquid-crystalline midblock and liquid-crystal-phobic endblocks. In contrast to in situ polymerized networks, these physical gels are homogeneous systems with a solubilized polymer network giving them exceptional optical uniformity and well-defined crosslink density. Furthermore, the unusually high-molecular-weight polymers used allow gels to form at lower concentrations than previously accessible. This enables these gels to be aligned by surface anchoring, shear, or magnetic fields. The high content of small-molecule liquid crystal (>/=95%) allows access to a regime of fast reorientation dynamics.
Source: europepmc · Quality: candidate unverified · Source record ↗
Research context
OpenAlex topics: Liquid Crystal Research Advancements · Advanced Materials and Mechanics · Hydrogels: synthesis, properties, applications
SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.
References (34)
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