The synthesis and liquid crystalline behaviour of alkoxy‐substituted derivatives of 1,4‐bis(phenylethynyl)benzene

Despite the prevalence of organised 1,4‐bis(phenylethynyl)benzene derivatives in molecular electronics, the interest in the photophysics of these systems and the common occurrence of phenylethynyl moeties in molecules that exhibit liquid crystalline phases, the phase behaviour of simple alkoxy‐substituted 1,4‐bis(phenylethynyl)benzene derivatives has not yet been described. Two series of 1,4‐bis(phenylethynyl)benzene derivatives, i.e. 1‐(4′‐alkoxy)phenylethynyl]‐4‐(phenylethynyl)benzenes (5a–5f) and methyl 4‐(4″‐alkoxy)phenylethynyl‐4′‐(phenylethynyl)] benzoates (18a–18f) alkoxy = n‐C₄H₉ (a), n‐C₆H₁₃ (b), n‐C₉H₁₉ (c), n‐C₁₂H₂₅ (d), n‐C₁₄H₂₉ (e), n‐C₁₆H₃₃ (f)] have been prepared and characterised. Both series have good chemical stability at temperatures up to 210°C, the derivatives featuring the methyl ester head‐group (18a–18f) offering rather higher melting points and generally stabilising a more diverse range of mesophases at higher temperatures than those found for the simpler compounds (5a–5f). Smectic phases are stabilised by the longer alkoxy substituents, whereas for short and intermediate chain lengths of the simpler system (5a–5c) nematic phases dominate. Diffraction analysis was used to identify the SmB_hex phase in (5d–5f) that is stable within a temperature range of approximately 120–140°C. The relationships between the organisation of molecules within these moderate temperature liquid crystalline phases and other self‐organised states (e.g. Langmuir‐Blodgett films) remain to be explored.