Synthesis and Liquid Crystalline Properties of Mesogen-Jacketed Polymers with Different Polymer Backbone

Two monomers of 2,5-bis [(p-methoxyphenoxy)carbonyl] benzyl acrylate and 2,5-bis[(p-methoxyphenoxy)carbonyl] benzyl methacrylate and their corresponding polymers were successfully synthesized. The mesomorphic behavior of both polymers was examined by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarized optical microscopy (POM). It was found that both polymers are noncrystalline with a glass transition temperature of 67.1??C for poly-{2,5-bis[(p-methoxyphenoxy)carbonyl]benzyl acrylate} and 95.1 ??C for poly-{2,5-bis[(p-methoxyphenoxy)carbonyl]benzyl methacrylate}, above which the former can form liquid crystalline state and the clearing temperature is 97.8??C while the latter can not. This indicates that main-chain rigidity will affect the liquid crystallinity of mesogen-jacketed polymers.EI01118192