Ferroelectric liquid crystalline polyoxyethylenes with etheric-oxygen-containing spacers

Abstract

Ferroelecmc liquid crystalline polyoxyethylenes are synthesized. Each side chain consists of etheric-oxygen-containing methylene spacer, biphenyl or biphenyl benzoate core and 2-methylbutoxycarbonyl chiral end group. The addition of the first oxygen atom, counted from the main chain, to the methylene spacer broadens the SmC* temperature range and shortens the electro-optical response time. The shorter response time suggests that the additional carbon-oxygen linkages promote the decoupling between the main chain and the side chains. The addition of the second and third oxygen atoms, counted from the main chain, as oxyethylene units, lowers the degree of polymerization and does not shorten the response time further.