A monomer with a side-chain azobenzide, acrylamido azobenzene (AAAB), was synthesized, and a series of poly(acrylic acid-co-acrylamido azobenzene) polymers and gels were prepared through the copolymerization of this AAAB monomer with acrylic acid. Their responses to pH and ultraviolet light were studied. These copolymers and gels showed good pH responses and photoresponses; these responses were caused by the ionization of carboxyl and the cis-trans isomerism of azobenzide, respectively. The molecular structures of the copolymers and gels were also studied with X-ray diffraction, and the results showed that the copolymers with a certain amount of AAAB could form crystalline structures.
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