Chiroptical and optical thermoplastic acid sensors based on chiral methacrylic polymers containing azoaromatic moieties

We present here a preliminary report on the interaction between a new class of chiral azo-polymers with protic acids. The experiments have been carried out on amorphous thin films obtained by spin coating. The investigated polymers display reversible changes of their UV-vis spectra and chiroptical properties (evidenced by circular dichroism measurements) in response to external chemical stimuli, thus suggesting their potential use as ultrathin thermoplastic sensors.