Spectroscopic and Thermo–Mechanical Studies of Liquid Crystal Elastomer

The structure and influence of temperature on mechanical deformation of Liquid Crystal Elastomers (LCEs) were studied using various techniques like Raman Spectroscopy (RS), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) Spectroscopy and Polarizing Microscopy Studies (PMS) etc. The spectroscopic studies confirmed the presence of functional group attached to the sample. The shrinkage in length was observed while heating whereas material returns to its original length on cooling which revealed the correlation of mechanical behavior of Liquid Crystal Elastomers with temperature. This spontaneous shape changing property indicates that LCE material plays an important role in biological applications.