Synthesis of ferroelectric liquid crystalline polymers by ring opening polymerization

Abstract

The synthesis of two series of side-chain liquid crystalline polyoxetanes and polyoxiranes containing 4-alkanyloxybiphenyl-4'-yl (2S,3S)-2-chloro-3-methylvalerate side groups is presented. Differential scanning calorimetry, polarizing optical microscopy, and X-ray diffractometry reveal smectic mesomorphism for all obtained polymers. Most of the prepared polyoxetanes present smectic A and chiral smectic C phases. The polyoxetane containing tweleve methylene units in the spacer is the only one showing two enantiotropic smectic A and B phases. All of the obtained polyoxiranes display two enantiotropic smectic A and B phases. Although the polyoxetane and polyoxirane backbones are more flexible than the polymethacrylate backbone, side-chain crystallization do not occur in any of the synthesized polymers.