Chiral liquid crystalline thiols for preparation of polybutadiene diols

Abstract

New chiral thiols possessing biphenyl and phenyl moieties as well as ester linkage groups in the molecular core have been synthesised and grafted on polybutadiene diol backbones. The resulting diols possess OH end groups that enable the possibility for preparation of ordered liquid crystal networks. The mesomorphic properties of the synthesised thiols and resulting diols have been studied by polarising optical microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. Chiral thiols as well as the resulting side‐chain diols exhibit liquid crystalline behaviour, with a very broad paraelectric smectic A phase. The effects of side‐chain structure of the ester thiols and density of grafting of the polybutadiene diols on mesomorphic properties were determined and are discussed.

Keywords:

• chiral thiols
• polybutadiene diols
• Bunte salts
• side‐chain polymers
• liquid crystal polymers

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by Grants: No. IAA4112401 and IAA100100710 from the Grant Agency of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic; No. 202/05/0431 from the Czech Science Foundation; and No. OC 175 from the Ministry of Education, Youth & Sports of the Czech Republic.