Mesophases discotic

Meier et al. have also contributed to the field of cyclic PAV oligomers with the synthesis of cyclic dl -trans (all- ) trimers (e.g. 113) containing alkoxy-substituted 1,7-naphthylene and 1,9-phenanthrylene building blocks, via a Siegrist-type trimerizing olefination [134,135]. Suitable substitution at the periphery of the cyclic trimers allows for the formation of stable, thermotropic discotic mesophases [134]. 

The discotic mesophases are classified in two types columnar, and nematic discotic. The structure of the nematic discotic mesophase (Np, Figure 8.3, left) is similar to that of rod-like molecules, but constituted by disk-like units. In columnar mesophases, the molecules are stacked in a columnar disposition and, depending on the type of columnar arrangement, several columnar mesophases are known. The most common lattices of the columnar phases are nematic discotic (No), columnar nematic (Ncoi), columnar hexagonal (Coin), and columnar rectangular (Col,) mesophases. 

To understand how chirality is expressed, it is important to first describe the different thermotropic mesophase assemblies which can be formed by chiral discotics. Even though expression of chirality has been observed in thermotropic mesophases, the chiral expression occurs in a rather uncontrolled manner, and systems which are suitable for applications, for example, easily switchable columns/ferroelectric discotic liquid crystals, consequently have not yet been developed. Hence, the assembly of discotics in solution has received considerable attention. Supramolecular assemblies of discotic molecules in solution are still in their infancy and have not yet found commercial application, but they are of fundamental importance since they allow a detailed and focused investigation of the specific interactions that are required to express chirality at higher levels of organization. As such, the fundamental knowledge acquired from supramolecular assemblies in solution might formulate the design criteria for thermotropic chiral discotic mesophases and provide the necessary tools for the creation of functional systems. 

The first observed example of helical order in a discotic mesophase was found in hexa-hexylthiotriphenylene (18).24-26 Molecule 18 has two mesophases, at high temperature a Colhd mesophase and at low temperature a Colho... 

Van Nostrum and co-workers first published evidence for a chiral superstructure in the discotic mesophase of chiral phthalocyanines in 1993.44 Homochiral phthalocyanine 43 was compared with its racemic analog 44. Whereas 44 showed a normal Colh<) phase and did not form helical columns, the homochiral side chains of 43 gave rise to a helical packing of the discotics... 

Discotic liquid crystals based on carbohydrates are intrinsically chiral due to the chiral nature of their core.49,50 Numerous discotic liquid crystals derived from these mesogens have been reported however, the expression of chirality in the subsequent mesophases has only rarely been seen. An example of the latter is the a-anomer of penta- O -decanoylglucopyranosc (47), which forms a discotic mesophase in which the molecules pack helically in the columns... 

Figure 3. (a) Representation of the hexagonal discotic mesophase formed by hexadodecyl substituted HBC 33. (b) The temperature dependence of the intracolumnar charge carrier mobilities for 33 and 34. Phase transition tempera-... 

PAH chemistry is of practical as well as theoretical interest. PAHs can be regarded as well defined subunits of graphite, an important industrial material, which is so far not totally understood at the macroscopic level. In this context, it is our aim to delineate the molecular size at which the electronic properties of PAHs converge to those of graphite. Furthermore, alkyl substituted derivatives of hexabenzocoronene (HBC) form discotic mesophases and, therefore, provide opportunities for materials which allow one-dimensional transport processes along their columnar axis [83,84]. Their application for photovoltaics and Xerox processes is also of current interest. 

Note 1 See Fig. 13 for an illustration of the molecular arrangement in a discotic mesophase. 

Figure 7.3 Schematic representation of N and Colh discotic mesophases with the director vector n.

Fig. 10. Schematic representation of nematic, smectic and discotic mesophases...

Table 2. Examples of Heats and Entropies of Transition of Nematic, Smectic, and Discotic Mesophases...

Liquid Crystals (see Chapter 6). Certain bicyclic copper complexes, such as 45 [78452-82-1], show discotic mesophases and are therefore attractive as liquid crystals for electro- and thermo-optical display elements [73],... 

Perhaps one of the most important applications of chiral induction is in the area of liquid crystals. Upon addition of a wide range of appropriate chiral compounds, the achiral nematic, smectic C, and discotic phases are converted into the chiral cholesteric (or twisted nematic), the ferroelectric smectic C and the chiral discotic phases. As a first example, we take the induction of chirality in the columns of aromatic chromophores present in some liquid-crystalline polymers. " The polymers, achiral polyesters incorporating triphenylene moieties, display discotic mesophases, which upon doping with chiral electron acceptors based on tetranitro-9-fluorene, form chiral discotic phases in which the chirality is determined by the dopant. These conclusions were reached on the basis of CD spectra in which strong Cotton effects were observed. Interestingly, the chiral dopants were unable to dramatically influence the chiral winding of triphenylene polymers that already incorporated ste-reogenic centers. 

Due to the disc-like geometry of the porphyrin macrocycle, discotic mesophases have generally been the most common for porphyrin liquid-crystalline materials. The first porphyrin liquid crystals featuring rod-like calamitic mesophases were described by Bruce and coworkers using substituted 5,15-di(phenyl) zinc porphyrin complexes as the basic molecular building block.The first materials... 

---