Organic−Inorganic Hybrid Liquid Crystals:  Hybridization of Calamitic Liquid-Crystalline Amines with Monodispersed Anisotropic TiO2 Nanoparticles

• Published in: Journal of the American Chemical Society Vol. 125; no. 35; pp. 10518 - 10519
• Main Authors: Kanie, Kiyoshi, Sugimoto, Tadao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: WASHINGTON American Chemical Society 03.09.2003; Amer Chemical Soc
• Subjects: Chemistry; Chemistry, Multidisciplinary; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Equations of state, phase equilibria, and phase transitions; Exact sciences and technology; Physical Sciences; Physics; Science & Technology; Specific phase transitions; Transitions in liquid crystals; TITANIA PARTICLES; ORGANIZATION; GEL-SOL METHOD; Titanium oxides; Optical microscopy; Transmission electron microscopy; Phase transformations; Optical properties; Transition elements Compounds; Monodispersed particle; Experimental study; Primary amine; Liquid crystals; Organic compounds; Optical anisotropy
• ISSN: 0002-7863; 1520-5126
• DOI: 10.1021/ja0357691

A novel organic−inorganic hybrid thermotropic liquid crystal (LC) is developed by the hybridization of an organic amine with a mesogenic core and an acicular anisotropic TiO2 particle through the adsorption of the amino group to the surfaces of the TiO2. The hybrid LC shows nematic phases in wide ranges of temperatures. Variable-temperature small-angle X-ray measurements reveal that the formation of the one-dimensional nematic order of the acicular particles on a submicrometer scale induces thermotropic liquid crystallinity. This technique would lead to induction of dynamic functions in inorganic particles.