Berlin 2012 – scientific programme

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CPP: Fachverband Chemische Physik und Polymerphysik

CPP 28: Colloids and Complex Liquids I

CPP 28.12: Talk

Wednesday, March 28, 2012, 18:15–18:30, C 130

Free-standing Fluid Filaments Using Star-shaped and Discotic Liquid Crystal Mesogens — •Tanya Ostapenko, Michael Morys, Alexey Eremin, and Ralf Stannarius — Otto-von-Guericke-Universität, Universitätsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany

Stable free-standing filaments have been formed in several mesophases of bent-core liquid crystals. Such filaments can have slenderness ratios of 1000 or more. In contrast, filaments prepared from columnar liquid crystal phases of disk-shaped molecules have slenderness ratios several orders of magnitude lower, due to the two-dimensional compressibility of the phase. From atomic force microscopy measurements, smectic filaments appear to have a corrugated structure, with composite bundles constructing the filament [1].

Recently, star-shaped oligobenzoates were synthesized [2], which form various liquid crystal columnar mesophases over a large temperature range. To date, there have been no reports on free-standing filaments prepared from such mesophases. Using a similar experimental setup to that described in [1], along with polarizing microscopy, we were able to create meta-stable filaments. We measure optical, mechanical and electrical properties of these unique systems and discuss potential applications.

[1] A. Nemes, et. al. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. 8, 469-476 (2005).

[2] M. Lehmann, et. al. Chem. Eur. J. 14, 3562-3576 (2008).