Polymeric dispersions of model azobenzene dyes

New host–guest systems were prepared by using poly(vinyl acetate) and different ethylene–vinyl acetate copolymers as polymeric hosts because of their good compatibility with polar molecules. Two symmetric azobenzene diesters, that is 4,4′-dicarboxyethylazobenzene and 4,4′-di(2-ethylhexyloxycarbonyl)azobenzene were selected as guests. Both solution casting and melt processing were adopted for the preparation of dispersion films that were thoroughly characterized by thermal analysis, UV–vis and FT-IR spectroscopy, and by polarized optical microscopy. The reported results indicate that solution casting afforded heterogeneous dispersions of dye microcrystals at guest concentrations larger than 0.3% whereas homogeneous colored films were obtained at lower dye contents. On the other hand, both melt processing and the presence of branched diester groups favored the dye dispersion within the polymer matrix. At 0.1% dye content, the adopted preparation technique did not appreciably affect the film properties. After 4–8 fold stretching, the host–guest films were analyzed by polarized light spectroscopy. Some of the investigated films displayed interesting polarization efficiency, potentially suited for the preparation of thin film polarizers.