3D structure of nematic and columnar phases of hard colloidal platelets

We present small angle x-ray scattering data of single-domain nematic and columnar liquid crystal phases in suspensions of sterically stabilized gibbsite platelets. The measurements are performed with different sample orientations to obtain information about the three-dimensional structure of the liquid crystalline phases. With the x-ray beam incident along the director of the nematic phase a strong correlation peak is observed corresponding to the side-to-side interparticle correlations, which suggests a columnar nematic structure. Upon sample rotation this side-to-side correlation peak of the nematic shifts to higher Q-values, suggesting the presence of strong fluctuations of small stacks of particles with different orientations, while the overall particle orientation is constant. In the hexagonal columnar phase, clear Bragg intercolumnar reflections are observed. Upon rotation, the Q-value of these reflections remains constant while their intensity monotonically decreases upon rotation. This indicates that the column orientation fluctuates together with the particle director in the columnar phase. This difference between the behaviour of the columnar and the nematic reflections upon sample rotation is used to assign the liquid crystal phase of a suspension consisting of larger platelets, where identification can be ambiguous due to resolution limitations.