writer：Alexander Ryabchun, Quan Li (co-first author), Federico Lancia, Ivan Aprahamian, Nathalie Katsonis
keywords：photoswitch, liquid crystal polymer
source：期刊
specific source：JACS
Issue time：2019年

Interfacing molecular photoswitches with liquid crystal polymers enables the amplification of their nanoscale motion into macroscopic shape transformations. Typically, the mechanism responsible for actuation involves light-induced molecular disorder. Here, we demonstrate that bistable hydrazones can drive (chiral) shape transformations in liquid crystal polymer networks, with photogenerated polymer shapes displaying a longterm stability that mirrors that of the switches. The mechanism involves a photoinduced buildup of tension in the polymer, with a negligible influence on the liquid crystalline order. Hydrazone-doped liquid crystal systems thus diversify the toolbox available to the field of lightadaptive molecular actuators and hold promise in terms of soft robotics.