Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic imaging of anisotropic poly(vinylidene fluoride) films with polarized radiation

The technique of Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopic imaging with focal plane array detectors has proved to be a powerful technique for rapid chemical visualization of samples with a lateral resolution up to about 10 mu m. However, the potential of FT-IR imaging for the characterization of anisotropic materials can be significantly enhanced by using polarized radiation. This issue will be addressed in the present communication, which reports for the first time imaging investigations based on the FT-IR polarization spectra of poly(vinylidene fluoride) films that have been uniaxially elongated below and above the threshold temperature of the II(alpha) double right arrow I(beta) phase transition.