Phase behavior and molecular self-assembly of some calamitic/bent-core nematic mixtures

Abstract

The primary research goal within contemporary liquid crystalline display industry is to discover new materials exhibiting phase temperature range and properties useful for display application. In this work, we studied five binary mixtures composed of different concentrations of bent-core and calamitic compounds. Pure compounds and selected mixtures were studied by polarizing optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and X-ray diffractometry, as well as by semi-empirical quantum-chemical calculations. Phase transition types, temperatures, and enthalpies were determined. Molecular packaging in the nematic mesophase is proposed. All studied mixtures exhibit the nematic phase of wide temperature range near to the room temperature.