Major research challenges for materials science and technology include the design of tailor-made materials with deliberately controlled and multifunctional performance attributes. In the field of composite materials, powerful methods have been developed to control and dynamically modulate the distribution of components to facilitate synergistic property combinations that are fundamental to the design of next-generation smart materials. Liquid crystals (LCs) are promising candidates to serve as building components for polymer composites, since they not only possess unique optical, electrical, and mechanical properties but can also respond to various stimuli. In this work, the development of stratification as a tool for controlling structure formation in LC/polymer materials and the applications of fabricated devices are summarized. This review focuses specifically on the use of light as a clean and effective trigger to initiate photopolymerization and induce stratification. The different mechanisms of light-induced stratification, their implementation for the design and fabrication of composite materials and their corresponding properties are presented. Finally, future challenges and opportunities in this exciting area, including new techniques, are discussed.

材料科学和技术的主要研究挑战包括设计具有故意控制和多功能性能属性的材料。在复合材料领域，已经开发出了强大的方法来控制和动态调整组件的分布，以促进协同性能组合，这对于设计下一代智能材料至关重要。液晶（LC）有望成为聚合物复合材料的建筑部件，因为它们不仅具有独特的光学，电气和机械性能，而且还可以响应各种刺激。在这项工作中，总结了分层技术作为控制LC /聚合物材料中结构形成的工具的发展以及制造设备的应用。这篇评论特别侧重于使用光作为引发光聚合和诱导分层的清洁有效的触发器。介绍了光致分层的不同机理，其在复合材料的设计和制造中的实现方式及其相应的性能。最后，讨论了这个令人兴奋的领域中的未来挑战和机遇，包括新技术。