Optical and Physical Applications of Photocontrollable Materials: Azobenzene-Containing and Liquid Crystalline Polymers
Open Access
- 8 January 2012
- Vol. 4 (1), 150-186
- https://doi.org/10.3390/polym4010150
Abstract
Photocontrol of molecular alignment is an exceptionally-intelligent and useful strategy. It enables us to control optical coefficients, peripheral molecular alignments, surface relief structure, and actuation of substances by means of photoirradiation. Azobenzene-containing polymers and functionalized liquid crystalline polymers are well-known photocontrollable materials. In this paper, we introduce recent applications of these materials in the fields of mechanics, self-organized structuring, mass transport, optics, and photonics. The concepts in each application are explained based on the mechanisms of photocontrol. The interesting natures of the photocontrollable materials and the conceptual applications will stimulate novel ideas for future research and development in this field.Keywords
This publication has 195 references indexed in Scilit:
- Photoswitching properties of photonic crystals infiltrated with polymer liquid crystals having azobenzene side chain groups with different methylene spacersReactive and Functional Polymers, 2011
- Azo Polymer Colloidal Spheres Containing Different Amounts of Functional Groups and Their Photoinduced Deformation BehaviorLangmuir, 2008
- Hybrid Colloids Composed of Two Amphiphilic Azo Polymers: Fabrication, Characterization, and Photoresponsive PropertiesMacromolecules, 2007
- UV‐Light‐Induced Swelling and Visible‐Light‐Induced Shrinking of a TiO2‐Containing Redox GelAdvanced Materials, 2007
- Stretching Effect of Linearly Polarized Ar+ Laser Single-Beam on Azo Polymer Colloidal SpheresLangmuir, 2006
- Formation of Photoresponsive Uniform Colloidal Spheres from an Amphiphilic Azobenzene-Containing Random CopolymerMacromolecules, 2006
- Amphiphilic Azo Polymer Spheres, Colloidal Monolayers, and Photoinduced Chromophore OrientationLangmuir, 2005
- Temperature modeling of laser-irradiated azo-polymer thin filmsThe Journal of Chemical Physics, 2004
- Switching of the helical polymer conformation in a solid polymer filmMacromolecular Rapid Communications, 2000
- Photoinduced circular anisotropy in side-chain azobenzene polyestersOptical Materials, 1997