Structural coloration of textiles with PMMA photonic crystals

To achieve the whole ecological preparation and application of structurally colored textiles with photonic crystals (PCs), degradable PMMA colloidal nanospheres in a high mass fraction (30 wt%) were synthetically prepared by an emulsion polymerization method, and then PMMA liquid photonic crystals (LPCs) with a pre-crystallized form were efficiently prepared by a rotary evaporation/surfactant method. The LPCs exhibited excellent dynamic reversibility and high color saturation. By utilizing the LPCs as assembly intermediates and combining with a shear-induced assembly technique, the large-scale and rapid structural coloration of textiles was realized. Thanks to a PU polymer layer pretreated on the fabric surface, the structural stability of the PMMA photonic crystals on textile substrates was significantly improved, ensuring consistency between the structural stability and color saturation of the PMMA photonic crystals. The dialysis of the colloidal PMMA nanospheres removed the oligomers and small molecule substances, further improving the structural stability of PMMA photonic crystals.