Enhanced Electro-Optical Properties of Polymer-Stabilized Liquid Crystals with Linear Nonliquid Crystalline Monomers

Polymer-stabilized liquid crystals (PSLCs), which exhibit tunable optical properties in response to external stimuli, are essential for the development of advanced functional devices. To meet the growing demands of lightweight wearable devices, it is crucial that electric-driven PSLCs not only maintain high off-state transparency but also achieve lower working voltages. In this work, we propose a copolymerization strategy that incorporates linear nonliquid crystalline monomers (NLCMs) into the PSLC system to form a polymer network with liquid crystalline monomers (LCMs), thereby enhancing electro-optical performance. Compared to conventional PSLC based on LCMs, the introduction of linear NLCMs disrupts the order of liquid crystal (LC) molecules, which in turn affects the polymerization kinetics, ultimately weakening the elastic interactions between the polymer network and LCs. This modification leads to a significant reduction in both working voltage and hysteresis effects while simultaneously improving the long-term stability. Furthermore, shorter spacer chains of linear NLCMs minimize chain entanglement, forming a looser polymer network and consequently decreasing the working voltage. These findings offer valuable insights for the design and fabrication of high-level LC/polymer composites for dynamic augmented reality and virtual reality applications.