MOLECULAR MOTIONS OF SIDE-CHAIN LIQUID-CRYSTALLINE POLYMERS IN THE LIQUID-CRYSTALLINE PHASE STUDIED BY THE THERMALLY STIMULATED CURRENTS TECHNIQUE

In the present work the thermally stimulated currents technique was us ed to study the upper glass transition relaxations in two side-chain l iquid crystalline polysiloxanes. The nature of those relaxations at th e molecular level is a controversial subject, but our results lead us to suggest thay they correspond to the reorientational motions in the liquid crystalline phase of the longitudinal and transverse components of the dipole moment of the mesogenic side group. This assignment is compatible with the conclusions from extensive studies of the dipolar relaxation behaviour of side-chain liquid crystalline polymers by diel ectric relaxation spectroscopy.