DEUTERIUM MAGNETIC-RESONANCE STUDY OF SOME LIQUID-CRYSTALLINE POLYSILOXANES

Deuterium nuclear magnetic resonance is used to study two side-chain poly(methylsiloxanes) and their corresponding low molecular weight mesogens. The compounds are selectively deuterated and are studied as a function of temperature over their mesomorphic regions. The measurement of the various quadrupolar splittings and, in some cases, of the dipolar interactions are analyzed in terms of orientational order, using a single-order parameter model. In addition, some information is given about the probability distribution of gauche conformers in the aliphatic chains of the various compounds. © 1990, American Chemical Society. All rights reserved.