Molecular properties of comb-shaped polymers with cyanobiphenyl mesogenic side groups

The electrooptical, dielectric, and hydrodynamic properties of two new comb -shaped LC polymers in benzene and chloroform solutions were studied. The m onomer group of a polymer contains a polar group (-CN- or -COCH3-) in the b ackbone and a hydroxyl group in a spacer linking a cyanobiphenyl side mesog enic group to the backbone. The electrooptical and dielectric properties of the synthesized polymers are compared with the properties of the homologou s series of alkoxycyanobiphenyls, which model the side chains of the polyme rs under study. The observed difference in the values of the Kerr constant is explained by a different mobility of the side mesogenic groups in the st udied polymers, which is related to the specific features of the chemical a nd dipole structures of macromolecules.