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Abstract
The fundamental thermal and optical properties of a side-chain cholesteric liquid crystal silicone, which forms a single blue phase, were investigated. In particular, we examined the optical activity of the isotropic and blue phase for fields varying from zero to approximately 106 Vm−1. The zero-field optical activity data is not consistent with theoretical predictions. Optical microscopy, Bragg reflections and thermal analysis were also used to further characterize the properties of the liquid crystalline phases.