液晶欠陥による気体分子のキラリティの簡便検出法

抄録

We discovered the utility of self-organized periodic orientational structures of a liquid crystal confined within microwrinkle grooves for sensing chiral molecules in gas samples and their chiral handedness. The developed method utilizes a novel phenomenon in which a liquid crystal in microwrinkles alters its orientational structures in response to the chirality of dissolved gas molecules. This structural change can be easily observed by a polarizing microscope alone as soon as a gas sample is blown onto the liquid crystal, enabling the construction of a sensor system for quick evaluation of the chirality of a tiny amount of gas samples at ambient temperatures and pressures. This method is expected to be applicable to the analysis of volatile chemicals in perfumes etc. and to environmental monitoring.