Influence of the structure of the mesogenic core on the thermotropic properties of ω-unsaturated fluorinated liquid crystals

Three series of calamitic liquid crystals have been prepared, consisting of a mesogenic core attached to which is a perfluorinated chain via a thioester linkage, and a hydrocarbon chain containing a terminal double bond. The rigid core is either a monophenyl, biphenyl or phenyl benzoate group. The mesomorphic properties were characterized by polarizing optical microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. The influence of the structure of the mesogenic core and of the hydrocarbon chain length on mesomorphic behaviour was studied. Increasing the length of the alkyl chain strongly reduces the mesomorphic behaviour while increasing the number of aromatic rings in the core increases the transition temperatures, with the widest LC range observed for derivatives with the phenyl benzoate core. The introduction of a single ring as the mesogenic core is considered of great interest in the development of low cost liquid crystal materials.