Electronic Functions in Liquid-Crystalline Nanostructures with High Polarization

Multifunctionality was created by coupling an electronic charge carrier transport with ionic conductivity or ferroelectricity in polarized liquid crystal phases. Liquid-crystalline perylene bisimide derivatives bearing cyclotetrasiloxane rings and triethylene oxide chains formed nanosegregated columnar structures which could conduct ions as well as electrons. The spin-coated thin films could be insolubilized by the exposure on acid vapors and display electrochromism. Phenylterthiophene derivatives bearing a chiral alkyl side chain exhibited a ferroelectric phase, in which a photovoltaic effect was caused by the interaction between photogenerated charge carriers with the internal electric field formed by the spontaneous polarization of the ferroelectric phase.