What is it about?
New liquid crystal (LC) molecules with Schiff base linkage and fluoro substituents are synthesized and characterized. It is anticipated that the presence of highly electronegative and small sized fluorine atoms influences the liquid crystal’s mesomorphic behavior, while the Schiff base structure enhances polarizability and molecular interactions. The new liquid crystals are characterized by 1H NMR spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), polarized optical microscopy (POM) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Nonlinear optical properties (NLO) are studied through DFT measurements.
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Why is it important?
n the present work, we report the synthesis of two new LC molecules, 4-((2′,4′-diflourophenylimino)methyl)phenyl-4′′-pentyloxybenzoate (5OFB) and 4-((2′,4′-diflourophenylimino)methyl)phenyl-4″-dodecyloxybenzoate (12OFB) and study the effect of the alkoxy chain length and the polarity of the fluoro substituents on the mesomorphic properties. The chemical, phase and thermal characterization are discussed and the nonlinear optical properties of 5OFB carried out through DFT studies is described. A wide range of nematic mesophase is observed in the shorter chain length compounds while the higher chain length compounds exhibited a wide range of smectic mesomorphism.
Perspectives
The findings of the DSC and POM investigations show that the molecule’s mesophase behavior is significantly influenced by the terminal alkoxy chain length. Investigating the molecule’s nonlinear optical characteristics also produced encouraging findings for its possible use in photonic devices. The ability to refine the mesomorphic behavior by varying the alkoxy chain length provides a notable advantage in designing materials with specific properties for optical switching and display technologies.
Dr Subrahmanya Bhat K
Manipal Institute Of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education
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This page is a summary of: Mesomorphic and DFT study of new difluoro substituted Schiff base liquid crystals, Scientific Reports, May 2025, Springer Science + Business Media,
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-97375-8.
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