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Related Experiment Videos

Surface ordering above the isotropic-smectic-A transition at a silane-treated substrate.

T Moses1

  • 1Department of Physics, Knox College, Galesburg, Illinois 61401, USA.

Physical Review. E, Statistical, Nonlinear, and Soft Matter Physics
|July 20, 2001
PubMed
Summary

Surface ordering in alkyl cyanobiphenyl liquid crystals was studied. A specific liquid crystal (10CB) exhibited an ordered surface layer in the isotropic phase, unlike others, suggesting a surface-induced nematic phase.

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Physical Chemistry
  • Condensed Matter Physics

Background:

  • Liquid crystals exhibit ordered phases crucial for display technologies.
  • Surface interactions significantly influence liquid crystal phase behavior.
  • Alkyl cyanobiphenyls (nCB) are a well-studied class of liquid crystals.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Investigate surface ordering in nCB liquid crystals at the isotropic-smectic-A transition.
  • Determine the influence of molecular chain length on surface ordering.
  • Explore the nature of the ordered interfacial layer.

Main Methods:

  • Evanescent-wave ellipsometry was employed to probe surface ordering.
  • A silane surfactant was used to induce homeotropic alignment on the substrate.

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  • Homologous series of nCB liquid crystals (10CB, 11CB, 12CB) were analyzed.

    • Main Results:

    • 10CB showed partial wetting with an ordered, homeotropic interfacial layer in the isotropic phase.
    • This ordered layer grew but remained finite in thickness near the bulk transition.
    • The interfacial layer exhibited lower orientational order than the smectic phase, suggesting a possible surface-induced nematic phase.
    • 11CB and 12CB displayed no surface ordering behavior.

    Conclusions:

    • A sharp transition in surface ordering behavior occurs with varying alkyl chain length in nCB liquid crystals.
    • The surface-induced nematic phase is a plausible explanation for the observed ordering in 10CB.
    • Surface properties critically affect liquid crystal phase transitions and ordering.