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Updated: Jan 2, 2026

From Molecules to Materials: Engineering New Ionic Liquid Crystals Through Halogen Bonding
Published on: March 24, 2018
Stabilization of Columnar Liquid Crystal Phases via Arene-Perfluoroarene Interactions
Rebecca E Yardley1, Joseph A Paquette1, Hi Taing2
1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry , Wilfrid Laurier University , 75 University Avenue West , Waterloo , ON , Canada , N2L 3C5.
Abstract:
We report the synthesis of novel polycatenar dibenzopentacenequinones 1 and 2 that are designed to form columnar liquid crystalline phases. The mesomorphic properties of these compounds were investigated by polarized optical microscopy, differential scanning calorimetry, and powder X-ray diffraction. While compound 1 exhibits two distinct columnar mesophases between 148 and 177 °C, fluorinated 2 exhibits a columnar mesophase from 121 to 336 °C. This dramatic stabilization of the columnar mesophase of 2 can be attributed to improved π-stacking as a result of arene-perfluoroarene interactions.
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