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Liquid Crystals Anchored on Mixed Monolayers of Chiral versus Achiral Molecules: Continuous Change in Orientation as a Function of Enantiomeric Excess
Author(s) -
Bai Yiqun,
Abbasi Reza,
Wang Chenxuan,
Abbott Nicholas L.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
angewandte chemie
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1521-3757
pISSN - 0044-8249
DOI - 10.1002/ange.201402770
Subject(s) - monolayer , enantiomer , liquid crystal , molecule , chemistry , chirality (physics) , orientation (vector space) , crystallography , materials science , stereochemistry , chemical physics , organic chemistry , nanotechnology , chiral symmetry , geometry , physics , nambu–jona lasinio model , optoelectronics , mathematics , quantum mechanics , quark
The orientations of liquid crystals (LCs) anchored on monolayers formed from mixtures of chiral versus achiral molecules were compared. Changes in the enantiomeric excess of mixed monolayers of chiral dipeptides gave rise to continuous changes in the orientations of nematic LCs, allowing arbitrary tuning of the azimuthal orientations of LCs over a range of ≈100°. In contrast, the same LCs exhibited discontinuous changes in orientation on surfaces presenting mixtures of achiral molecules. These striking differences in the anchoring of LCs on surfaces presenting chiral versus achiral molecules provide insights into the molecular origins of ordering transitions of LCs, and provide new principles based on chiral monolayers for the rational design of surfaces that permit continuous tuning of the orientations of LCs.