Highly ordered side-chain liquid-crystalline polymers from maleic anhydride and swallow-tailed 1-alkenes having two mesogens

Side-chain liquid-crystalline polymers (SCLCPs) were synthesized from the a lternating copolymerization of maleic anhydride with swallow-tailed 1-alken es having two mesogens. In contrast to similar polymers from 1-alkenes with one mesogen per repeating unit, these novel polymers exhibited lower isotr opization temperatures and higher glass transition temperatures. The degree of order in the mesophase strongly increased: these SCLCPs exhibited a hig hly ordered smectic H phase. The polymers with a hexyl spacer between the m alonate junction and the mesogen exhibited a uniaxially limited-correlation -length smectic E mesophase (S-Eu) which has, according to our knowledge, n ot been observed before. The highest transition temperatures and entropy ch anges were observed for polymers with completely interdigitated side chains .