POLYMER NETWORKS CONTAINING CHOLESTERYL COMPOUNDS OF DIFFERENT FUNCTIONALITY

The synthesis of densely crosslinked polymer networks with a helicoida l structure from various cholesteryl compounds is described. By mixing nematic diacrylates with cholesteryl compounds of different functiona lity, cholesteric phases are obtained. The reflection wavelength can b e varied by the composition of the mixture. Isothermal photopolymeriza tion leads to crosslinked networks with different fixation of the chol esteryl compounds to the network depending on their functionality. The influence of temperature and organic solvents on the reflection wavel ength as well as the angular dependence of the reflection wavelength h ave been investigated.