Liquid crystalline metal-free phthalocyanines designed for charge and exciton transport

A joint theoretical and experimental study of the electronic and structural properties of liquid crystalline metal-free phthalocyanines bearing a strong potential for charge and exciton transport has been performed. The synthesis of such compounds has been triggered by quantum chemical calculations showing that: (i) hole transport is favored in metal-free phthalocyanines by their extremely low reorganization energy (0.045 eV) and large electronic splittings; and (ii) the efficiency of energy transfer along the one-dimensional discotic stacks is weakly affected by rotational disorder due to the two-dimensional character of the molecules. We have synthesized two metal-free phthalocyanines with different branched aliphatic chains on the gram scale to allow for a full characterization of their solid-state properties. The two compounds self-organize in liquid crystalline mesophases, as evidenced by optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray powder diffraction, and molecular dynamics simulations. They exhibit a columnar rectangular mesophase at room temperature and a columnar hexagonal mesophase at elevated temperature.     

Smectic, columnar and cubic mesophases in binary systems of hemiphasmidic and calamitic amphiphilic diols

A first example of an amphiphilic hemiphasmid consisting of a biphenyl rigid core connected to a hydrophilic 5,6-dihydroxy-3-oxahexyloxy group at one end and carrying two lipophilic dodecyloxy chains at the other end has been synthesized by a Pd-catalysed cross coupling reaction. The liquid crystalline properties of this compound have been investigated by polarized light microscopy, by differential scanning calorimetry and by X-ray diffraction. It exhibits a thermotropic hexagonal columnar mesophase which is stabilized on addition of formamide. On addition of ethylene glycol, a bicontinuous cubic mesophase is induced. Furthermore, binary mixtures of this compound with structurally related single chain amphiphiles have been investigated. Besides a smectic A phase, an induced columnar mesophase and a cubic phase were found in these mixtures.     

Effect of ionic aggregates of sulphonate groups on the liquid crystalline behaviours of liquid crystalline elastomers

A series of siloxane-based liquid crystalline elastomers containing biphenyl benzoate mesogenic units and ionic Brilliant Yellow moieties was synthesized. The chemical structures and liquid crystalline properties of the samples were characterized by FTIR, ¹H NMR, DSC, POM and XRD. The effective crosslink density of the ionic elastomers was determined by swelling experiments in organic/buffer mixtures. All the polymers displayed a smectic mesophase. It was shown that the glass transition and melting point temperatures of the polymers increased slightly with increasing content of ionic and mesogenic groups in the polymers, while the liquid crystal mesophase region decrease slightly.     

液晶聚芳醚酮的结构与性能研究

以联苯二酚、取代对苯二酚及含氟酮单体为原料 ,通过亲核取代反应 ,合成了系列具有液晶性的新型聚芳醚酮 .研究了聚合物分子结构与性能之间的关系 .由于结晶相是从有序的液晶相转化形成的 ,故侧基含量的增加对液晶聚合物的融熔转变温度无显著影响 .聚合物的液晶稳定性受侧基影响较大 ,含极性侧基的氯取代聚合物的液晶温区比含大空阻侧基的聚合物的液晶温区小得多 ,说明空间几何因素比极性因素对液晶稳定性的影响大 .不同分子量聚合物有不同的液晶有序结构 ,低分子量聚合物具有高有序液晶结构 ,而高分子量聚合物只有低有序的向列相结构 .     

Self-organization of low-symmetry adjacent-type metallophthalocyanines having branched alkyl chains

Low-symmetry, adjacent-type metallophthalocyanines 1 and 2 with four branched alkyl chains on one side and a chiral bridging segment on the other were synthesized, and their self-organization properties were investigated. The synthesized adjacent-type phthalocyanines were liquid-crystalline and exhibited a phase transition from the crystalline phase to the mesophase below room temperature. X-ray diffraction indicated that the molecules are stacked in one-dimensional columnar aggregates with a hexagonal arrangement. The self-organization behavior of zinc complex 1 and cobalt complex 2 was also investigated with a monolayer experiment at the air-water interface. The adjacent-type phthalocyanines formed a stable monolayer at the air-water interface, and the monolayers could be transferred onto quartz substrates by a Y-type deposition. UV-vis, XRD, and CD measurements for the resulting Langmuir-Blodgett films indicated that 1 and 2 had different molecular orientations.     

Observation of intercalated smectic phases in symmetric liquid crystal dimers containing hydrazide groups

Dimeric hydrazide derivatives with nitro, phenyl, and methyl terminal subsistents were synthesized. The liquid crystalline properties were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry, polarizing optical microscopy and wide angle X-ray diffraction. Interestingly, intercalated smectic phases were observed in these symmetric liquid crystal dimers. The effect of the substituents and the length of the spacer on the mesophase is discussed, confirming that intermolecular hydrogen bonding between the hydrazide groups was the driving force for the formation of the intercalated structures.     

Properties of some alkyl substituted phthalocyanines and related macrocycles

This report provides an account of research undertaken at the University of East Anglia, United Kingdom, into phthalocyanine derivatives substituted at six or more of the nonperipheral sites by alkyl groups. When first prepared they were only the second series of substituted phthalocyanines known to exhibit columnar liquid crystal behaviour. The compounds also form structured films by the spin-coating technique, a formulation with potential for FET devices. The zinc metallated derivatives are photosensitisers of singlet oxygen and show good potential for applications in photodynamic therapy. A mixed cyclotetramerisation of a 3,6-dialkylphthalonitrile with a second aromatic dinitrile forms so-called 3 : 1 phthalocyanines in which three of the benzenoid rings are substituted with two alkyl groups and the fourth is substituted differently. Appropriate substituents provide amphiphilic compounds that form well-ordered films by the Langmuir-Blodgett method and self-assembly techniques. Characterisation of the films using a variety of methods is discussed and applications described. Examples of 3 : 1 phthalocyanine-like macrocycles in which one of the benzenoid rings is replaced by a heterocycle extend the range of properties exhibited. These include broadband absorption in the near infrared and, in particular cases, edge-to-face dimerisation through coordination of a pyridine nitrogen to a zinc centre in a second macrocycle. The potential for using suitably functionalised 3 : 1 phthalocyanines as building blocks for more complex structures such as liquid crystalline main-chain polymeric phthalocyanines and phthalocyanino-dehydroannulenes is described.     

The influence of charge-transfer interactions on solid and cholesteric liquid crystalline mixtures of cholesteryl anthraquinone-2-carboxylate and cholesteryl 9,10-dimethoxyanthracene-2-carboxylate

The phase behaviour of 3beta-cholesteryl 9,10-anthraquinone-2-carboxylate (CAQ, an excellent electron acceptor) and 3beta-cholesteryl 9,10-dimethoxyanthracene-2-carboxylate (CMAQ, an excellent electron donor) have been investigated neat and as mixtures by a variety of techniques. Both molecules form thermotropic cholesteric phases. UV-Vis absorption spectra of CAQ:CMAQ mixtures provide strong evidence for the formation of charge-transfer (CT) complexes in the solid state. DSC thermograms of the mixtures reveal several transitions, only some of which are observable by optical microscopy. The mesophase range of CAQ is increased by c. 40 upon addition of as little as 10 wt% of CMAQ as a consequence of increased attractive forces in the CT complexes. X-ray powder diffraction patterns confirm that CAQ forms different crystalline phases upon being cooled from the mesophase and by recrystallization from solvents. The 5:5 mixture can be supercooled to a glass from its cholesteric phase. Some of the phase behaviour of the CAQ:CMAQ mixtures is explained with a model that includes selective crystallization of the two components into eutectics from supercooled liquid crystalline matrices.     

Callimatic and T-shaped liquid crystalline compounds with fluorinated terminal groups

A series of liquid crystalline polyesters with a rigid T-shaped or a stick-like mesogenic fragment and fluorinated terminal groups of various structures was synthesized and studied by means of polarization optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and IR and ¹H NMR spectroscopy. It was shown that the effect of the fluorinated group on the thermostability of the mesophase depends on the shape of the mesogenic fragment. The thermostability of the mesophase in callimatic liquid crystalline compounds with perfluorinated terminal groups is higher and in those with difluoromethyl terminal groups containing one hydrogen atom is lower compared with their alkyl analogs. This is connected with the possibility of weak hydrogen bonding that destroys the liquid crystalline order. The thermostability of the mesophase in compounds with a T-shaped mesogenic fragment and any fluorinated terminal groups is always higher compared with their alkyl analogs.     

Synthesis and liquid crystal properties of triphenylene liquid crystals bearing polymerisable acrylate and methacrylate groups

The synthesis and liquid crystalline properties of some new triphenylene discotics bearing pendant acrylate groups are described. Mesophase behaviour is found to be sensitive to the number and position of substituents, the linking chain length, and to change between acrylate and methacrylate termini. Investigation of the isomerically pure triphenylene acrylate and methacrylate derivatives showed that the molecular symmetry also has a modest effect on mesophase behaviour. Unsurprisingly columnar phases are formed only when all substituent chains are of comparable length and methacrylates are far superior to simple acrylate termini, probably due to favourable space filling in the mesophase.     

The self-ordering properties of novel phthalocyanines with out-of-plane alkyl substituents

Two novel homologous series of phthalocyanines were prepared from 2,2-dialkylindane and 2,2-dialkyl-1,3-benzodioxole precursors. It was anticipated that attaching alkyl chains to five-membered rings, fused to the peripheral sites of the phthalocyanine ring, would result in the adoption of an out-of-plane configuration and thereby discourage cofacial aggregation, to provide an analogy with picket-fence porphyrins. This strategy proved partially successful. Some members of the series of phthalocyanines derived from 2,2-dialkyl-1,3-benzodioxoles, in which the alkyl chains are linked to the phthalocyanine via a cyclic ketal, form spin-coated thin films in which the phthalocyanine cores are perfectly isolated. This behaviour is associated with the formation of a disordered crystal that appears as a mesophase in the thermal profile of these materials. However, the phthalocyanines derived from 2,2-dialkylindanes display a columnar mesophase over a wide temperature range, with some liquid crystalline derivatives at ambient temperature. A single-crystal X-ray diffraction structure of the octahexyl derivative of this series shows how the columnar assembly accommodates the out-of-plane alkyl chains by tilting the macrocyclic plane of the phthalocyanine components with respect to the axis of the column. This study helps to emphasise the importance of both the steric and electronic effects of substituents on the packing behaviour of phthalocyanines in the condensed phase, and especially the role of electron-donating oxygen atoms directly attached to the ring.     

Naphthyl benzoates versus phenyl benzoates A molecular structure-liquid crystal and ferroelectric behaviour relationship study

A comparative study of the liquid crystal and ferroelectric properties of several achiral, racemic and non-racemic 2,6-naphthyl benzoates and their 1,4-phenyl benzoate analogues is reported. In terms of pure compounds, both central core structures give rise to similar mesophase sequences; however, the naphthalene derivatives exhibit broader and more thermally stable liquid crystalline states. On the other hand, both central core units give rise to equivalent electric and optoelectronic properties when the compounds are used as chiral dopants in ferroelectric liquid crystal mixtures.     

Electron-donating or -withdrawing nature of substituents revealed by the electrochemistry of metal-free phthalocyanines

The effect of substituents on the electrochemistry of metal-free phthalocyanines was examined for 17 phthalocyanine compounds. This work also provides new information about the electron-donating or -withdrawing nature of various substituents, namely, alkoxy, alkylthio, alkyl, alkynyl, phenyloxy, and phenylthio groups attached to the phthalocyanine system, from the viewpoint of electrochemistry. Most of the effects of peripheral and nonperipheral substitution and changes in the ring (pi-conjugated system) size on the electrochemistry of metal-free phthalocyanines can be reasonably explained by considering the energy levels of frontier molecular orbitals of the corresponding compounds, which were obtained by calculations using the semiempirical PM3 method.     

Banana-shaped side chain liquid crystalline siloxanes

Eight banana-shaped side chain liquid crystalline oligomers and polymers have been synthesized by hydrosilylation of vinyl-terminated bent-core mesogens with trimethylsilyl-terminated siloxanes. The synthesized oligomers and polymers, and their olefinic precursors, were investigated by polarizing optical microscopy (POM), differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction (XRD), electro-optical experiments and Maldi-Tof. The short-tailed olefins form a Col_r mesophase, whereas those with longer chains exhibit the SmCP_A mesophase. All the oligomers and polymers studied show liquid crystalline properties and do not crystallize upon cooling. Most oligomers with around four repeating siloxane units, show a lamellar (layer) structure and antiferroelectric switching properties, the SmCP_A phase. XRD shows that the layer spacings are hardly influenced by the length of the terminal tails. The oligomer prepared from the smallest olefinic precursor, having the shortest alkyl tail, shows an XRD pattern reminiscent of a columnar phase, although POM displays domains of opposite chirality, and no switching behaviour could be detected. The polymers with around 35 repeating siloxane units are liquid crystalline, but due to their high viscosity a thorough characterization of the liquid crystalline phases was impossible.     

SYNTHESIS AND CHARACTERIZATION OF PALLADIUM COORDINATING IMINE SIDE CHAIN LIQUID CRYSTALLINE POLYSILOXANES

New thermotropic chloro-bridged dinuclear palladium coordinating imine side chain liquid crystalline polysiloxanes have been synthesized. Their mesomorphic properties have been investigated by DSC, X-ray diffraction and polarizing microscopy. The polymeric complexes show nematicdiscotic (Nd) mesophase. It is found that the temperature range of liquid crystalline state of chloro- bridged polymeric complexes is much wider than that of acetato- bridged ones and imine side chain polysiloxane. This indicates that the disc-like chloro-bridged palladium complexing units play a role as mesogen in mesophase.     

Ionic liquid-crystalline polymer-based quaternary phosphonium salt

A series of quaternary phosphonium salts based on ionic liquid-crystalline polymers which were synthesised by triphenylphosphine and brominated polysiloxanes containing cholesteryl mesogens. The chemical structures, liquid crystalline properties and antimicrobial performance of [ChP]Brs were investigated by a series of test methods. [ChP]Brs showed smectic A mesophase with a wide temperature range of liquid crystalline phase in the heating and cooling cycles. The glass transition temperature and clearing point temperature decreased with the increase of triphenylphosphine content. While the increase of phosphorus content lead to the increase of antibacterial properties of polymers. The liquid crystal polymer provides full spatial support for complete contact between phosphorus ions and bacteria, So that the quaternary phosphonium salt can be fully sterilised.     

Synthesis and mesomorphic properties of fishbone-like liquid crystalline polysilsesquioxanes V. Pd-coordinating, fishbone-like azo-based liquid crystalline polysilsesquioxanes

New kinds of Pd-coordinating azo-based liquid crystalline polysilsesquioxanes, Pd-H-FBA and Pd-C-FBA, have been synthesized first by hydrosilylation reactions of a vinyl-terminated mesomorphic azo compound with ladder-like homopolyhydrosilsesquioxane (H-T) and copolymethylhydrosilsesquioxane (MH-T) to produce fishbone-like, azo-based liquid crystalline polysilsesquioxanes H-FBA and C-FBA, respectively, followed by a further ortho -palladation reaction with palladium chloride. The mesomorphic properties have been investigated by DSC, optical polarizing microscopy and temperature-variable X-ray diffraction. It is found that their clearing temperatures, Tcl, are much higher and the mesophase ranges, Delta T,are much wider than those of the corresponding comb-like polymers with a single main chain by more than 100 C. This indicates that the double main chain structures of the title polymers have a positive effect on mesomorphic properties. The influence of the contents of Pd2 ions on the liquid crystallinity is also discussed.     

Designer ionic liquid crystals based on congruently shaped guanidinium sulfonates

Ionic liquid crystals are mesogenic compounds that consist of cations and anions, usually rod-like cations and spherical anions. Herein we report a new method for the synthesis of ionic liquid crystals by using cations and anions of the same molecular shape with oppositely charged head groups. Thus, 4-alkoxyphenylpentamethylguanidinium 4-alkoxyphenylsulfonate ion pairs have been synthesised. 4-Alkoxyphenylpentamethylguanidinium iodides were also prepared to determine the influence of congruently shaped anions, in comparison with their spherical counterparts, on mesophase behaviour, which was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), polarising optical microscopy (POM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). All the liquid crystalline salts exhibit smectic A mesophases with strongly interdigitated bilayer structures. The guanidinium sulfonate ion pairs show mesomorphic properties from shorter alkyl chain lengths (≥C(9)) and lower melting points (≈10 K), whereas the corresponding guanidinium iodides are liquid crystalline for longer alkyl chain lengths (≥C(14)). For chains with ≥C(18), however, the mesophase range decreases for the sulfonate ion pairs, but not for the iodide salts.     

Thermotropic Properties and Molecular Packing of Discotic Tristriazolotriazines with Rigid Substituents

Tristriazolotriazines with a threefold dialkoxyaryl substitution have been prepared by Huisgen reaction of cyanuric chloride and the corresponding tetrazoles. Although these dyes show a negative or inverted solvatochromism of the UV/Vis absorption, their fluorescence is strongly positive solvatochromic. These discotic fluorophores are also emissive in their solid state and in their broad liquid‐crystalline mesophase. The structural study indicates that the thermotropic properties and organization of these systems can be well tuned by the steric demand of the aryl groups. Depending on the substituents, the compounds showed either a pure crystalline phase or a highly complex helical superstructure with a characteristic liquid‐crystalline phase at elevated temperatures. Changing the steric demand of the attached aryls allowed controlling the discs arrangement within the columnar helix, which is of great importance for the molecular orbital overlap.     

REFRACTOMETRY AND TEXTURES OF METHYL-CYANOETHYL CELLULOSE/DICHLOROACETIC ACID LIQUID CRYSTA LLI NE SOLUTIONS~+

An Abbe refractometer with a rotatable polarizer mounted on the eyepiece is used for determining the two principal refractive indices of methyl-cyanoethyl cellulose/dichloroacetic acid liquid crystalline solutions. The critical concentration where the mesophase appears can be determined according to the variation of the increment of the refractive index with the concentration. Mesophase textures of the liquid crystalline solutions are observed and the influence of the concentration on mesophase textures is also discussed.