Molecular Crystals and Liquid Crystals, Vol.550, 98-104, 2011
Preparation and Macroscopic Deformation of Liquid-Crystalline Polymer Fibers Crosslinked with Anthracene Side Chains
Anthraccene liquid-crystalline (LC) polymer fibers were synthesized and their photomechanical properties were explored. The polymer fiber bent toward a light source upon exposure to UV light due to photodimerization of anthracene moieties. They contracted with decrease in optical anisotropy along their fiber axis when they were heated above their LC-isotropic phase transition temperature.