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 monomer group of a polymer contains a polar group (-CN- or -COCH3-) in the backbone and a hydroxyl group in a spacer linking a cyanobiphenyl side mesogenic group to the backbone. The electrooptical and dielectric properties of the synthesized polymers are compared with the properties of the homologous series of alkoxycyanobiphenyls, which model the side chains of the polymers 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 studied polymers, which is related to the specific features of the chemical and dipole structures of macromolecules.