Side-chain cholesteric liquid crystalline elastomers derived from a mesogenic crosslinking agent: I. Synthesis and mesomorphic properties

摘要

The synthesis of new side-chain cholesteric elastomers derived from a cholesteric monomer and mesogenic crosslinking agent is presented. The chemical structures of the monomers obtained were confirmed by elemental analyses, FT-IR, H-1 NMR, and C-13 NMR. The mesomorphic properties and thermal stability were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), polarizing optical microscopy (POM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. M-1 showed cholesteric phase, and M-2 displayed enantiotropic nematic phase and monotropic smectic phase. The elastomers containing less than 12 mol% of the crosslinking units revealed reversible mesomorphic phase transition, wide mesophase temperature ranges, and high thermal stability. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.