Optical, Thermal Studies on Binary and Ternary Hydrogen-Bonded Liquid Crystal Complexes

Hydrogen-bonded ferroelectric liquid crystalline (HBFLC) complexes are synthesized from binary mixtures of l-(+)-tartaric acid with 4-dodecyloxybenzoic acid and cholesteryl acetate. A ternary complex has been obtained from l-(+)-tartaric acid, 4-dodecyloxybenzoic acid, and cholesteryl acetate. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) studies confirm the formation of an intermolecular hydrogen bond in the binary as well as the ternary complex. The l-(+)-tartaric acid does not show any mesomorphic behavior, but the hydrogen-bonded binary and ternary complexes are exhibiting the nematic phase along with tilted smectic phases. Phase transition properties of HBFLC mixtures have been investigated by means of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarizing optical microscope (POM). The DSC and POM clearly reveal the existence of nematic and smectic phases in the HBFLC mixtures. The optical tilt angle of binary and ternary mixtures for smectic C* phase and thermal stability factors of the mesogenic phases have been discussed. The noteworthy observation is that there is a significant reduction of phase transition temperatures with enhanced phase width, lowering melting temperature, and clearing point in the HBFLC ternary complex.