Controlled molecular orientation in nematic liquid crystal polymer particles

Liquid crystal microparticles controlled their molecular orientation exhibit unique material properties such as responsiveness to external stimuli. These material properties can be enhanced by introduction of crosslinked structure. Recently, we achieved the fabrication of the chiral nematic liquid crystalline polymer microparticles by dispersion polymerization. The particles are monodisperse and have controlled molecular orientation, thus potentially paving the way for the numerous applications. In this study, we investigated the material properties of the chiral nematic liquid crystalline polymer particles. As a result, the obtained polymer particles showed the wavelength-dependent light reflection based on the helical molecular orientation of the chiral nematic liquid crystalline polymer. In addition, we demonstrated introduction of a crosslinked structure into polymer particles and investigated its effect on the material properties of the microparticles. As a result, the introduction of crosslinked structure gave the particles the solvent resistance without losing other material properties.