Premium
Reconstruction of Achiral Polymer for Structural Chirality Using Cholesteric Liquid Crystal Medium and Light‐Driven Chiroptic Modulation
Author(s) -
Goto Hiromasa,
Ohta Reina
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
macromolecular chemistry and physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.57
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1521-3935
pISSN - 1022-1352
DOI - 10.1002/macp.201000168
Subject(s) - chirality (physics) , azobenzene , stacking , liquid crystal , polymer , moiety , mesogen , polythiophene , materials science , cholesteric liquid crystal , crystallography , intermolecular force , chemistry , photochemistry , liquid crystalline , stereochemistry , organic chemistry , molecule , conductive polymer , optoelectronics , physics , chiral symmetry breaking , quantum mechanics , nambu–jona lasinio model , quark
A series of optically inactive polythiophene derivatives bearing the azobenzene moiety are synthesized in an isotropic toluene solution. The polymers are then dissolved in a cholesteric liquid crystal (Ch*LC) medium within the liquid crystal (LC) temperature range. The dissolution process in Ch*LC produces intermolecular π‐stacking with structural chirality. Although the polymers thus prepared have no chiral center or axial chirality in the primary structure, they do exhibit consistent chiroptical activity derived from three‐dimensional chiral aggregations. Furthermore, photochemical cis–trans isomerization of the substituents allows light‐driven chiroptic modulation of the polymer.