Effect of a lateral substituent on the mesomorphic properties of ferroelectric side chain liquid crystalline polysiloxanes

Abstract

The synthesis of side chain liquid crystalline polysiloxanes containing oligooxyethylene spacers and (S)-2-methylbutyl 4-[(4-oxybiphenyl-4'-yl)carbonyloxyl-3-fluorobenzoate mesogenic side groups is presented. Differential scanning calorimetry, optical polarizing microscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements reveal liquid crystalline properties for all synthesized monomers and polymers. All three precursor olefinic monomers reveal cholesteric and smectic A phases. The olefinic monomer which contains two oligooxyethylene units in the spacer is the only one which reveals a twist grain boundary A phase and a blue phase, besides the cholesteric and smectic A phases. All three polysiloxanes present enantiotropic smectic A and chiral smectic C phases. The mesomorphic behaviours of the monomers and polymers are compared with those of the corresponding monomers and polymers without the lateral fluoro substituent. The results seem to demonstrate that incorporating a lateral fluoro substituent in the mesogenic cores of the monomers affects not only the mesophase thermal stability, but also the nature of the mesophases formed. However, incorporating a lateral fluoro substituent in the mesogenic cores of the polymers affects only the thermal stability of the mesophases formed. The lateral fluoro substituent has a more profound effect on the mesomorphic behaviour for the monomers than that for the polymers.