Alignment Behavior of a Discotic Liquid Crystal on alkanethiol and disulfide SAMs

Abstract

Alignment behavior of a discotic liquid crystalline triphenylene (C8OBT) on substrates coated with self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of alkanethiol and asymmetrical disulfide was investigated by polarized microscopy. Discotic nematic (N_D) and rectangular columnar (Col_r) phases of C8OBT show a different alignment behavior depending on the element of SAMs. C8OBT exhibits a fun-shaped texture on an alkylthiol SAM in the columnar rectangular phase, while it shows a planar alignment on a SAM consists of asymmetrical disulfide.