Occurrence of Reentrant Nematic and Reentrant Smectic A Phases in Mesogenic Series

A systematic comparative study of several series of chemically neighbouring compounds apt to give a reentrant mesomorphism is proposed. Experimental data concerning the various reentrant phases are summed up. From these observations various factors favourable to the occurence of the reentrance are revealed. Thus, the chemical composition, the sense and the location of dipoles in the molecules, the reduced temperatures, the length of the rigid core are discussed as relevant parameters.     

Co-Existent Biphasic Region of Nematic and Columnar Smectic Phases in Binary Mixture of Berberine and Alizarin Dye

We report the results of our studies on the optical and thermal properties of binary mixture of two compounds viz., berberine and alizarin dye. The mixture shows a very interesting co-existent biphasic region of nematic N + I and smectic C + I phases, sequentially when the specimen is cooled from its isotropic phase respectively at different concentrations of Alizarin dye in berberine molecule. The temperature variations of optical anisotropy, optical textures, and electrical conductivity have also been discussed. Aggregated molecular size has been confirmed by X-ray studies.     

The Smectic A and the Smectic C Phase: A Coherent Molecular Picture

A molecular field theory of the smectic A and smectic C phase is presented which is based on an interaction derived in terms of the molecular polarizability, its anisotropy and the components of the static molecular quadrupole tensor. It is shown that this attractive interaction strongly depends on the anisotropy of the excluded molecular volume. The results obtained explain the stability of the A phase, the appearance of the tilt in the C phase and the A-C phase transition, without resource to adjustable parameters which indeed have no molecular significance.     

Experimental Evidence for a Hyperscaling Relation at a Nematic to Smectic A Phase Transition

A hyperscaling relation v_″ + 2v_┴ = 2 – α is examined for the nematic to smectic A transition of 4-octyloxy-4′-cyanobiphenyl (8OCB) and 4-octyl-4′-cyanobiphenyl (8CB). From the heat capacity results, 2-α is analyzed to be 1.84 ± 0.03 for 8OCB and 1.75 ± 0.02 for 8OCB. On the other hand v_″ + 2v_┴ is calculated from the results reported by X-ray experiments to be 1.87 ± 0.12 for 8OCB and 1.69 ± 0.11 for 8CB. From the above coincidences the hyperscaling relation is found to be applicable to the nematic to smectic A transition.     

Determination of the Birefringence,the Twist Angle and the Thickness of the Nematic Liquid Crystal Sample by Renormalized Transmission Ellipsometry

Abstract

The birefringence, the twist angle and the thickness of the nematic liquid crystal sample were determined by means of the renormalized transmission ellipsometry. It was proposed that conventional sandwich-type cell is applicable to this ellipsometry measurement and the simplified numerical fitting procedure based on the 4 × 4 matrix method can provide the dispersion of the ordinary and the extraordinary refractive indices. The resolution of the twist angle and cell thickness measurement reaches to 0.05 deg. and 0.05 μm, respectively.     

PERFORMANCE OF SHORTER PERIODICAL DOMAIN OF NEMATIC LIQUID CRYSTAL INDUCED BY ELASTIC WAVE PROPAGATION

Abstract

The light diffraction properties of a shorter periodical domain, which is caused by an elastic wave propagating along one of two glass plates composing a liquid crystal cell, are described. The shorter periodical domain is controllable for the application of an electric field to the liquid crystal cell. The response time of the disappearance of the shorter periodical domain decreases with increasing the applied voltage. On the other hand, the response time of the domain formation is independent of the applied voltage. These response times agree quantitatively with those of the birefringence electrooptic effect. The domain disappearance by applying the voltage to the liquid crystal indicates the Freedericksz transition.     

Nematic Defects and Colloids as Photonic Elements

Birefringent structures in liquid crystalline fluids, such as colloidal assemblies or topological defects, show high potential for use as photonic elements. Here, we present a brief overview of two photonic phenomena originating from coupling light fields with complex birefringent nematic profiles: (i) the generation of vector laser beams from simple Gaussian beams by propagating light along nematic discliantions, and (ii) tunable photonic crystals from blue phase colloidal crystals conditioned by the different underlying symmetries of the particle lattice and the blue phase birefringence. The polarization profile of initially simple linearly polarized Gaussian beams is shown to change into a defect structure at distinct distances travelled along the disclination with the topological invariant (winding number) of the light field and nematic director distinctly coupled. Upon pulsed laser illumination, the nematic discliantions are also shown to split the light pulse into multiple intensity regions. Blue phase I face centred cubic colloidal crystals are shown as examples of tunable photonic crystals, where local band-baps can open by differently combining the symmetries of the two components, e.g. by changing the particle size. The spatial profiles of selected photonic bands in the blue phase colloidal crystals are shown, finding the particles and blue phase double twist cylinders as possible carriers of high-light-intensity regions.     

On the Transition between Cholesteric and Nematic Phases in Magnetic Field

Singularities at the critical lines bounding the cholesteric and nematic phases on the magnetic field versus temperature plane are investigated. Critical exponents, α and γ, of the specific heat and magnetic susceptibility are found both unities. By regarding the inverse of pitch of the cholesteric structure as an order parameter, it is found that the exponents β and δ are zero and infinity, respectively, and these exponents satisfy the scaling relations, α + 2β + γ = 2 and α + β (δ + 1) = 2. In relation to the discommensurate charge density wave in layer structure materials, it is noted that the transition from the nematic to cholesteric phase occurring with the change of magnetic field and/or temperature is interpreted as a condensation process of solitons.     

Electrical and Optical Properties of Conducting TCNQ Salts

New series of TCNQ molecular complexes and organic radical-lm salts are presented. Their electrical behavior is related to their optical properties: characteristic parameters, such as the plasma frequency and the relaxation time. arc dcduced.     

Transport,Magnetic and Structural Studies of Polyacetylene

Experimental progress is reviewed with emphasis on magnetic and transport studies. The magnetic results are fully consistent with the soliton doping mechanism; the decrease in Curie-law contribution has been demonstrated; the Pauli term remains small (Y < 0.07) and is apparently zero in the limit of completely uniform doping. The electrical conductivity (P and T dependence) and thermopower (n-type and p-type) are in excellent agreement with Kivelson's theory of intersoliton electron hopping.     

An Introduction to the Solid State Polymerization of Transition-metal Complexes: A Comparative Study

Preliminary studies in this laboratory^' of topochemical and topotactic polyreactions of NiBr₂[P(CH₂CH₂CN)₃]₂ have shown that the reactions are in many cases characterized by a) product specificity, b) stereospecificity, c) “crystallographic specificity” and d) highly anisotropic “front motion” through individual single crystals. The polymerization reaction under investigation here is     

The effect of concentration and molecular weight of polycarbonate on the elastic constants of a nematic liquid crystal solvent

A polarized upconverting luminescence in a novel upconverison nanorods (UCNRs)/liquid crystal network polymer (LCN) composite film is proposed. The UCNRs were fabricated by hydrothermal method, which were further modified to be introduced into LCN precursors with good dispersion. The orientation of UCNRs in LCN precursors was found to be strongly influenced by the configuration of LC molecules which could be modulated by external electric field. The UCNRs/LCN composite films in planar and homeotropic configuration were fabricated by UV photopolymerization. It is demonstrated that upconverting fluorescence emission from the UCNRs/LCN film with planar orientation is polarization-dependent, while the emission from the UCNRs/LCN film with homeotropic alignment is not polarized. These observations are ascribed to the directional arrangement of the UCNRs enabled by the LC molecules alignment and the crystal symmetry of the UCNR matrix. This work paves a different avenue to the construction of the upconversion nanoparticles/polymer composite system with prospective application value in anti-counterfeiting optical films.     

Molecular Relaxation in hi Ghly Ordered Orthogonal Smectic SA,SB and SE Phases

Dielectric relaxation and calorimetric investigations were perforemed on different smectic phases. Discountinuities of the critical frequency were found at both S_A-S_B and S_B-S_E phase transitions. S_A and S_E structures can be regarded as two-dimensional liquid and two-dimensional crystal, respectively. The low frequency dielectric dispersion presented here demonstrates the difference btween the S_E and a three-dimensional cyrstal where this phenomena is absent.     

Liquid Crystals: A Bibliography for 1977

X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and x-ray photoemission measurements indicate that the metallic conductivity of iodine-doped polyacetylene results from the intercalation of iodine between close-packed planes of the parent phase to form a charge transfer complex. The polyacetylene chains donate charge to produce I₃ and a second iodine species with lower charge density, most likely I₅. The structure of this charge transfer complex can be viewed as a perturbation of the structure of the parent polymer, which has been derived from x-ray diffraction analysis and lattice energy calculations.     

The Dielectric Anomaly Near the Transition from the Smectic A* to Smectic C* Phase and Visco-Elastic Properties of Ferroelectric Liquid Crystals

A pyro-electric technique is developed which allows the measurement of the dielectric response near the A*-C* phase transition in ferroelectric liquid crystals. The temperature dependence of the elastic modulus K _θ(T) corresponding to the molecular tilt in smectic layers is calculated from the experimental data. Direct pyro-electric measurements of the relaxation time for the spontaneous polarization P _s and the data on K _θ(T) allow us to calculate the temperature behaviour of the twist-viscosity γ₁(T) for the smectic C* phase. The curves γ₁(T) are compared for the smectic C* and the nematic phase of the same compound and the dependence of the twist viscosity on the molecular tilt angle in the C* phase is investigated. The results of the dielectic measurements are discussed in terms of the mean-field approximation.