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http://hdl.handle.net/2289/3778
Title: | Unusual odd-even effects depending on the monomer chain length in nematic liquid crystals made of rod-like dimers |
Authors: | Kundu, Brindaban Pal, Santanu Kumar Kumar, Sandeep Pratibha, R. Madhusudana, N.V. |
Keywords: | Condensed matter: structural, mechanical & thermal Soft matter, liquids and polymers |
Issue Date: | 13-Feb-2009 |
Publisher: | IOP Publishing Ltd. |
Citation: | Europhysics Letters, 2009, Vol. 85(3), p36002 |
Abstract: | We report physical studies on the nematic phase exhibited by five members of a homologous series of symmetric dimers which have cyanobiphenyl end groups and, a disulphide bridging group in the spacer. All of them have rod-like conformations in the nematic phase, but unusually, the nematic-isotropic transition temperature, the birefringence and the dielectric anisotropy exhibit "odd-even" effects depending on the number of carbon atoms in the alkyl chain of a monomeric moiety. Further, the lowest "even" homologue exhibits a nematic-nematic transition. We argue that these phenomena arise from the relatively facile rotational fluctuations of the two monomeric moieties around the central S-S bond, whose orientation with respect to the long molecular axis changes between the "even" and "odd" members. |
Description: | Restricted Access. |
URI: | http://hdl.handle.net/2289/3778 |
ISSN: | 0295-5075 1286-4854 (Online) |
Alternative Location: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1209/0295-5075/85/36002 |
Copyright: | 2009 IOP Publishing Ltd. |
Appears in Collections: | Research Papers (SCM) |
Files in This Item:
File | Description | Size | Format | |
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2009_EPL_V85_36002.pdf Restricted Access | 6p. | 760.9 kB | Adobe PDF | View/Open Request a copy |
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