Synthesis of photosensitive polyimide for liquid crystal alignment under non-polarised UV ageing lamp irradiation and a study on the possible mechanism of alignment

A new photosensitive polyimide (PI) was successfully synthesised via esterification of PI containing hydroxyl groups with cinnamoyl chloride (CL). The cinnamate (CA) group contents of the PI was up to 90%. The PI films could induce uniform parallel alignment of liquid crystal (LC) molecules after the non-polarised ultraviolet ageing lamp exposure, which reduce the cost significantly compared with polarised ultraviolet light equipment. In addition, the PI exhibited good thermal stability. Meanwhile, the possible mechanism of PI alignment films induced by NPUVL was discussed in some detail.