Single liquid crystalline dendrimer under smectic-like mean field

ABSTRACT

Monte Carlo Simulation studies of different generation liquid crystalline dendrimers (LCDrs) () under smectic-like mean field have been presented. Mean field-induced configurational and alignment properties of several LCDrs at different field strengths and layer spacing values were investigated. Tractable coarse-grained force fields to model both monomer–monomer and monomer–field interaction potentials have been formulated. Particularly, the effect of mean field on the shape, size and orientation of LCDrs was addressed. Depending on the generation of an LCDr, strength of the field and the layer spacing, on average spherically symmetric LCDrs were changed to either rod- or disc-like shapes. At a relatively strong field, smaller-generation LCDrs stretched to their maximum size at bigger values of layer spacing, whereas larger-generation LCDrs compressed to attain short-cylinder-/disc-like shape at smaller values of layer spacing. In addition to stretching and compression, sub-molecular partitioning has also been observed. Two layers of mesogenic units separated by populations of spherical beads were formed along the field direction. Those layers of mesogens are oriented along the field direction with intensity of orientability highly depending on the field strength.

GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT

KEYWORDS:

• dendrimer
• liquid crystal
• liquid crystal dendrimer
• smectic mean field

Acknowledgement

The first author would like to acknowledge Marie Curie Initial Training Network FP7-PEOPLE-2007 and Bahir Dar University for their financial support through the ITN-215884 DENDREAMERS and BDU/RCS/SC/36/2009 projects, respectively.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This article is funded by Marie Curie Initial Training Network FP7-PEOPLE-2007 and Bahir Dar University ITN-215884 DENDREAMERS and BDU/RCS/SC/36/2009