Rigid rod polymers with flexible side chains. X. Thermotropic mesophases from aromatic stiff-chain polyamides bearing n-alkoxy side chains

The synthesis of stiff-chain poly(1,4-phenylene terephthalamide)s substituted by two as well as by four flexible side chains per repeating unit is described. The solubility of the materials bearing only two side chains is still very low. Appending of four side chains leads to polyamides which dissolve in common organic solvents. All polyamides reported herein form layered structures in the solid state as well as in the mesophase. Polyamides with two side chains have a very weak tendency for crystallization and do not exhibit a transition to the isotropic state even for the longest side chains. Polyamides with four side chains show three reversible thermal transitions: a disordering transition of the side chains, a transition to a layered, smectic-like mesophase, and finally the transition to an isotropic melt. It is shown that the phase behavior of these materials is mainly governed by the strong segregation of main- and side-chains which can be compared best to the microphase separation in block copolymers. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.