Supramolecular liquid-crystalline materials: molecular self-assembly and self-organization through intermolecular hydrogen bonding

Supramolecular liquid-crystals are molecular complexes formed from different and independent molecular species through specific molecular interactions such as hydrogen bonding. We have recently developed new types of H-bonded liquid-crystalline materials obtained by molecular self-assembly processes: (1) doubly H-bonded liquid-crystalline complexes through a molecular recognition process between 2,6-bis(acylamino)pyridines and benzoic acids, (2) liquid-crystalline polymer blends involving an H-bonding interaction between poly(4-vinylphenol) and a thermotropic main-chain polyester containing a lateral pyridyl substituent, (3) liquid-crystalline networks built through hydrogen bonds between multifunctional H-bonding components. These new materials may bridge a gap between liquid crystals and supramolecular systems.     

Rotational viscosity of ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polysiloxanes

Some physical parameters of comb-shaped ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polymers were measured. Their rotational viscosities are two or three orders of magnitude larger than that of low molecular weight ferroelectric liquid crystals. Furthermore, they are found generally to be proportional to the second power of the weight-average molecular weight. Spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polymers has little dependence on molecular weight.     

Rotational viscosity of ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polysiloxanes

Abstract

Some physical parameters of comb-shaped ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polymers were measured. Their rotational viscosities are two or three orders of magnitude larger than that of low molecular weight ferroelectric liquid crystals. Furthermore, they are found generally to be proportional to the second power of the weight-average molecular weight. Spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polymers has little dependence on molecular weight.     

Molecular dynamics of a liquid-crystalline polymer with laterally fixed mesogenic side groups

Abstract

The long range molecular dynamical behaviour of liquid-crystalline side chain polymers with the mesogenic groups linked laterally to the backbone have been studied by using dielectric relaxation spectroscopy over a broad temperature and frequency range. The samples were oriented homeotropically and homogenously by electric and magnetic fields and the relaxations were recorded during alignment and with the fully aligned samples. By fitting the data to theoretical relaxation curves, accurate relaxation parameters could be determined, allowing us to perform a comparison with end-fixed liquid-crystalline side chain polymers on the one hand and with low molecular weight liquid crystals on the other. The relaxation in homeotropic alignment for the laterally fixed compound has more analogies in some aspects, for example, the relaxation time distribution, with low molecular weight liquid crystals than with the corresponding end-fixed compounds, though the activation energy is very large (241 kJ/mol). We relate this to the length of the rigid mesogenic unit and the resulting stronger repulsion by the neighbouring side chains during reorientation. In homogeneous alignment the relaxation is very broad and also has a large activation energy. Different molecular processes are related to this relaxation regime. The relationship between the different relaxation processes and the molecular structure is discussed.     

Fast switching ferroelectric liquid-crystalline polymers

The principles of ferroelectricity, especially in liquid crystals (FLC) and polymers, are briefly presented. In a liquid-crystalline side chain polyacrylate electro-optical switching with response times of 200–400 μs was measured. Besides the ferroelectric switching an even shorter electroclinic switching process was detected. The influence of the spacer length and the molecular weight on the ferroelectric properties is discussed. The kind and number of chiral centers and their location in the side group strongly affects the electrooptical properties. In one polymer a change of the optical contrast caused by a sign reversal of the spontaneous polarization was found. In another FLC polymer three switching states (antiferroelectric behaviour) were detected. With coloured and fluorescent FLC polymers, obtained by mixing or by copolymerization new promising applications in electrooptical devices are expected.     

Invited Lecture. Smectic A polymorphism from low to high molar mass systems

The polymorphism of smectic A phases in low molecular weight (L.M.W.) liquid crystals is associated with strong anomalies in the period defining the layers. The smectic A phases of liquid-crystalline comb-like polymers also have various modes of spacing. However, the behaviour of these polymer phases shows some peculiarities compared with L.M.W. compounds, especially due to the main chain which takes part in the smectic arrangement. To specify further the S_A polymorphism in high molar mass systems, the use of side chain polymers with partial fixation appears to be very promising: either taking advantage of better compatibility and lower viscosity in order to describe binary diagrams with L.M.W. mesogens, or through the partial insertions of long polar side groups known to generate anomalies of periodicity as for L.M.W. compounds.     

Invited Lecture. Smectic A polymorphism from low to high molar mass systems

The polymorphism of smectic A phases in low molecular weight (L.M.W.) liquid crystals is associated with strong anomalies in the period defining the layers. The smectic A phases of liquid-crystalline comb-like polymers also have various modes of spacing. However, the behaviour of these polymer phases shows some peculiarities compared with L.M.W. compounds, especially due to the main chain which takes part in the smectic arrangement. To specify further the S_A polymorphism in high molar mass systems, the use of side chain polymers with partial fixation appears to be very promising: either taking advantage of better compatibility and lower viscosity in order to describe binary diagrams with L.M.W. mesogens, or through the partial insertions of long polar side groups known to generate anomalies of periodicity as for L.M.W. compounds.     

Photo-polymerization of liquid crystalline monomer in oriented liquid crystal phase

<正>A new approach to synthesize liquid crystalline polymer with narrow polydispersity index(PDI) was developed.Photopolymerization of 4-cyanophenyl-4'-(6-acryloyloxyhexyloxy)benzoate(RM23) in nematic liquid crystals with macroscopic orientation was studied.The effects of the monomer concentration on the molecular weight and PDI of the resulting polymers were studied through gel permeation chromatography(GPC) and polarized optical microscopy.The low PDI of 1.19 and 1.22 was obtained in the reverse and normal modes,respectively.The PDI and molecular weight increased with monomer concentration.     

Spinodal decomposition in mixtures containing nematogens

A general stability criterion is presented for mixtures containing nematic liquid crystals. Conditions for absolute phase instability are found and represent a generalization of the usual spinodal concept. Physically, these conditions represent instabilities with respect to variations in the systems composition, degree of molecular ordering or some combination thereof. An example calculation corresponding to a liquid-crystalline polymer is presented. This calculation is based upon a well known lattice model which includes energetics that are dependent upon molecular orientation. Spinodal decomposition has profound effects on the morphology of a system which undergoes phase separation. Recent experimental and theoretical studies have attempted to explore these consequences in liquid-crystalline systems. None gives a rigorous definition of what is meant by spinodal in a mixture with orientational degrees of freedom; the material presented here clarifies this issue.     

Morphology of polymer networks polymerized in highly ordered liquid crystalline phases

The morphology and optical properties of polymer stabilized liquid crystals formed in a more highly ordered low molecular weight liquid crystal solvent were studied. Tetrafunctional, mesogenic monomers (with and without flexible spacers) were polymerized in isotropic, nematic and smectic phases of the LC solvent (4′-octyl-4-cyanobiphenyl) and studied with scanning electron microscopy and cross-polarized light microscopy. The network morphology of the nematic and isotropic phase polymerizations showed strong similarities with the corresponding polymerizations in other solvents. Polymerization in the smectic phase, however, resulted in marked increases in network order and directionality. Most dramatically, even the polymer without flexible spacer formed a fibrous network of rodlike units, in contrast to the random, beaded texture formed by the same polymer in nematic or isotropic conditions. Correspondingly, a large increase in birefringence demonstrated significant polymer orientation and more effective orientational interaction with the liquid crystalline solvent.     

Invite Article: The Liquid-Crystalline Phases of Double-Stranded Nucleic Acids in Vitro and in Vivo

This article describes the state of and progress in experimental studies of liquid crystals of naturally occurring nucleic acids and synthetic polynucleotides. The areas considered in this review include: (i) the liquid-crystalline phase of nucleic acids in aqueous salt solutions, (ii) the liquid-crystalline phase of nucleic acids in aqueous polymer solutions, (iii) the liquid-crystalline phase of nucleic acids in living systems. Some unsolved problems which are of interest from both a physicochemical and a biological point of view are discussed.     

Molecular dynamics in liquid-crystalline side chain polymers studied by dielectric relaxation spectroscopy: A comparative study

A series of liquid-crystalline side chain copolymers with different main chains have been studied by the dielectric method in a maximum frequency range of 9 decades. Oriented samples were used throughout. The data were analysed in terms of the Havriliak-Negami and Fuoss-Kirkwood formulae for the relaxation functions. Two well separated dispersion regions with their strengths depending strongly on the macroscopic orientation were found. The low frequency or δ-relaxation shows a marked change in its curve form and width with different main chain structure, its strength being determined by the longitudinal dipole moment of the mesogenic unit. The high frequency relaxation shows a more complicated dependence of its characteristic parameters on the molecular structure. In some cases a decomposition into two underlying relaxations was successfully attempted. We discuss the models for molecular motions developed for low molecular weight liquid crystals and for amorphous polymers, in order to explain the behaviour of the different dispersions found.     

含X-型液晶基元的液晶高分子的研究

以4,4′-(烷撑二酰氧)二苯甲酰氯和2,5-二羟基-1,4-苯撑双-(对乙氧基苯甲酸酯)为单体,采用低温缩聚方法,合成了含X-型液晶基元和不同柔性链长度的主链型液晶聚合物。聚合物的液晶行为用DSC、偏光显微镜和X-光衍射进行了表征。对于样品升温消光后又重新出现双折射的异常现象,初步认为是加热过程中分子量提高的结果。     

Dielectric relaxation in a mixture of a side chain liquid-crystalline polymer and a low molecular liquid crystal

Dielectric measurements on two mixtures of a low and high molecular liquid crystal and the pure components have been carried out in the frequency range from 1 Hz to 100 kHz. In the S_A and supercooled S_A phase two absorption ranges were observed. The low frequency absorption belongs to the low molecular weight liquid crystal. The shift in the relaxation frequency of both compounds indicates complete miscibility. The strong difference of the absorption intensity of the polymer on heating and cooling can be associated with the formation of mixed crystals at smaller concentrations of the low molecular weight compound.     

Properties of side chain liquid crystal and amorphous polymers. Applications to non-linear optics

Comb-like liquid-crystalline polymers exhibit many unique properties that challenge not only basic research but also numerous technological opportunities. They combine (partly) the properties of orientation of low molecular weight liquid crystals with the rigidity of polymers. For example, they can be oriented in the mesomorphic state and the structure frozen in a glassy state. These polymers with functionalized pendent groups lead to potential applications in the field of nonlinear optics, or in the domain of electro-optical displays. Other polymers like polysilanes show interesting properties such as photo-conductivity. This paper describes the properties and applications of some new side chain liquid-crystalline polyacrylates and their amorphous copolymers. It also describes the photo-conductive properties of polysilanes and their applications in spatial light modulators with liquid crystals. In the first part of this paper, we describe the properties of liquid crystal copolymers and amorphous polyacrylate copolymers with cyanobiphenyls and/or pendent groups with a large hyperpolarizability. Their different properties are compared with some recent results from the literature. These amorphous copolymers allow one to obtain, after poling in an electric field, high optical non-linear coefficients. We have used these copolymers for the manufacture of an electro-optic modulator working at 1·3 μm in the frequency range of 1 GHz. Applications to second harmonic generation at 1·06 μm are also discussed. In the second part of this paper we describe the photo-conductive properties of polysilanes and the realization and performance of an organic spatial light modulator for optical correlation.     

Diffraction grating in noncrosslinked polymers

The diffraction efficiency and morphology of the transmission modes of holographic polymer dispersed liquid crystals were studied with respect to the molecular structure of poly(urethane acrylate) (PUA), the film (polymer/liquid crystal) and resin (oligomer/monomer) compositions, and the cell thickness. PUA, based on N‐vinylpyrrolidone and ethyl hexyl acrylate, with low‐molecular‐weight poly(propylene glycol) at a low oligomer content, showed high diffraction efficiency. The results were interpreted in terms of the monomer reactivity and polymer elasticity. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 42: 613–620, 2004     

掺杂聚合物对溶致液晶结构的影响

利用聚合物大分子作构建组分,将其掺杂到不同类型表面活性剂构成的溶致液晶中,考察对液晶相结构的影响．利用小角X射线散射及偏光显微镜对聚合物掺杂前后液晶的结构进行表征,并讨论了聚合物与液晶模板间的相互作用．对阴离子型表面活性剂琥珀酸二异辛酯磺酸钠(AOT)／水液晶体系,聚合物的嵌入使层间距d增大;而对非离子表面活性剂十二烷基聚氧乙烯醚(C12EO4)／水体系,除小分子量的聚乙二醇PEG400外,其它聚合物嵌入使d减小,表明聚合物分子类型、大小及浓度对溶致液晶的结构参数甚至组装方式有不同的影响机制．     

Investigations of comblike polysiloxanes. I. The influence of spacer length on dielectric relaxation studies of aligned samples

Dielectric relaxation studies on aligned liquid-crystalline comblike polysiloxanes are presented. The polymers differ only in the length of the flexible spacer separating the mesogenic side groups from the polysiloxane backbone. The characteristic features of the observed relaxation process as a function of frequency and temperature, in both the liquid-crystalline and isotropic phases, are described, and the effect of the spacer length is discussed. Within the liquid-crystalline phase a narrow single loss process is observed, due to the relaxation of the mesogenic side groups around the polymer backbone, whereas in the isotropic phase a much broader loss curve is seen. The transition from an aligned polymer mesophase to the randomly aligned isotropic phase is also studied in detial, and comparison with earlier work on comblike polyacrylate and methacrylate liquid crystals is presented.     

在电场和磁场下手性侧链丙烯酸酯液晶聚合物的行为

在电场和磁场下手性侧链丙烯酸酯液晶聚合物的行为江雪平金顺子漆宗能张树范（中国科学院化学研究所北京１０００８０）关键词手性侧链丙烯酸酯液晶聚合物，红外二向色性，液晶分子排列含有手性液晶基团的聚合物，分子中含有不对称碳原子，在一定条件下使液晶聚合物...     

Liquid-crystalline side chain polymers by chemical modification of poly(chloroalkylvinylether)s

The synthesis of polyalkylvinylethers with pendant 4-cyano-4'-oxybiphenyl groups gives thermotropic liquid-crystalline polymers. The new method developed here consists of the living cationic polymerization of chloroalkylvinylethers and the subsequent modification of the polymer by the mesogenic groups. The liquid-crystalline polymers have a controlled degree of polymerisation and narrow molecular weight distributions. The influence on the mesomorphic properties of various parameters such as the degree of polymerization, the spacer length and the proportion of the mesogenic side chain content has been investigated. Binary phase diagrams with low molar mass analogues are also reported and the properties of both neat materials and binary mixtures are compared.