title: A single-component photo-responsive fluid based on a gemini surfactant with an azobenzene spacer.
abstract: A new gemini surfactant with an azobenzene group incorporated in the spacer has been synthesized. In water, this new compound forms a photo-responsive fluid, and the properties have been characterized by rheology and freeze-fracture electron microscopy (FF-TEM). UV/Vis irradiation causes a reversible change in zero shear viscosity of about 5 orders of magnitude. The different rheological properties correspond to different aggregation states in solution. A densely entangled network and small discrete micelles are respectively responsible for the high viscosity and the low viscosity state, as revealed by FF-TEM. The simplicity and high photo-efficiency of this single-component system act as a foundation for designing novel stimuli-responsive materials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Fuzhou University, Fuzhou 350002, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Binglei
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Yufang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.forename: Jianxi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhao