title: Polymer-dispersed liquid crystal elastomers.
abstract: The need for mechanical manipulation during the curing of conventional liquid crystal elastomers diminishes their applicability in the field of shape-programmable soft materials and future applications in additive manufacturing. Here we report on polymer-dispersed liquid crystal elastomers, novel composite materials that eliminate this difficulty. Their thermal shape memory anisotropy is imprinted by curing in external magnetic field, providing for conventional moulding of macroscopically sized soft, thermomechanically active elastic objects of general shapes. The binary soft-soft composition of isotropic elastomer matrix, filled with freeze-fracture-fabricated, oriented liquid crystal elastomer microparticles as colloidal inclusions, allows for fine-tuning of thermal morphing behaviour. This is accomplished by adjusting the concentration, spatial distribution and orientation of microparticles or using blends of microparticles with different thermomechanical characteristics. We demonstrate that any Gaussian thermomechanical deformation mode (bend, cup, saddle, left and right twist) of a planar sample, as well as beat-like actuation, is attainable with bilayer microparticle configurations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Solid State Physics (F-5), J. Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.|Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Andraž
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rešetič
authors.affiliation: Department of Solid State Physics (F-5), J. Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.|Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Jerneja
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Milavec
authors.affiliation: Department of Solid State Physics (F-5), J. Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Blaž
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zupančič
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, Università degli studi di Pisa, via Moruzzi 13, 56124 Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Valentina
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Domenici
authors.affiliation: Department of Solid State Physics (F-5), J. Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.|Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School, Jamova 39, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia.
authors.forename: Boštjan
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Zalar