HIGH-RESOLUTION ELECTRON-MICROSCOPY OF LIQUID-CRYSTALLINE POLYMERS

Special techniques of high resolution electron microscopy applied to liquid crystalline polymers in the smectic and discotic phases revealed characteristic distortions from the perfect lattice periodicity as well as defects. In order to verify the direct relationship between electron microscope images and structure, computer simulations were performed. Agreement was found between simulated image and structure proposed on the basis of evidence from electron diffraction imaging. A theory was developed to explain this unexpectedly good agreement. Image restoration by frequency filtering in reciprocal space was found to give good results for the discotic material.