Smart windows using thermochromic materials provide an excellent thermal management system over broad temperature ranges, leading to significant energy savings. Existing thermochromic materials face challenges, including difficulty in application, degradation during use, and limited durability. Here, we report a simple salted polymer blend system, consisting of poly(dimethylsiloxane), poly(ethylene oxide), and lithium perchlorate, that shows excellent thermochromic properties across an accessible temperature window and remarkable durability. The reversible temperature dependence of optical transmittance of the films arises due to the miscibility of the constituent polymers at room temperature, leading to high transparency, and the gradual phase separation and opaqueness with temperature rise. The easy-to-fabricate, stable polymer system can be a viable and cost-effective alternative to inorganic thermochromic materials such as vanadium dioxide for many applications.

中文翻译：

---

热致变色聚合物共混物


使用热致变色材料的智能窗户可在较宽的温度范围内提供出色的热管理系统，从而显着节省能源。现有的热致变色材料面临着应用困难、使用过程中降解和耐用性有限等挑战。在这里，我们报告了一种简单的盐化聚合物共混系统，由聚（二甲基硅氧烷）、聚（环氧乙烷）和高氯酸锂组成，该系统在可接近的温度范围内表现出优异的热致变色性能和卓越的耐用性。由于组成聚合物在室温下的混溶性，薄膜的光学透射率具有可逆的温度依赖性，从而导致高透明度，并随着温度升高逐渐发生相分离和不透明。这种易于制造、稳定的聚合物系统在许多应用中可以成为二氧化钒等无机热致变色材料的可行且经济高效的替代品。