In:
Chemical Science, Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), Vol. 13, No. 34 ( 2022), p. 9891-9901
Abstract:
The alignment control of discotic columnar liquid crystals (LCs), featuring a low motility of the constituent molecules and thus having a large viscosity, is a challenging task. Here we show that triphenylene hexacarboxylic ester, when functionalized with hybrid side chains consisting of alkyl and perfluoroalkyl groups in an appropriate ratio, gives a hexagonal columnar (Col h ) LC capable of selectively forming large-area uniform homeotropic or homogeneous alignments, upon cooling from its isotropic melt or upon application of a shear force at its LC temperature, respectively. In addition to the alignment switching ability, each alignment state remains persistent unless the LC is heated to its melting temperature. In situ X-ray diffraction analysis under the application of a shear force, together with polarized optical microscopy observations, revealed how the columnar assembly is changed during the alignment-switching process. The remarkable behavior of the discotic LC is discussed in terms of its rheological properties.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
2041-6520
,
2041-6539
Language:
English
Publisher:
Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Publication Date:
2022
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2559110-1
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