Apparent tricritical behavior at a nearly second-order nematic-isotropic phase transition of a cyclic liquid crystalline trimer.
The cyclic liquid crystalline trimer TPB-(c)9(3) was investigated by optical retardation and Fréedericksz techniques within a few tens of millikelvins of the superheating limit of the nearly second-order nematic-isotropic phase transition. Both the optical retardation and the Fréedericksz bend threshold voltage are in good agreement with tricritical behavior for the transition.
Syed
Ishtiaque M
IM
Department of Physics, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio 44106-7079, USA.
Percec
Virgil
V
Petschek
Rolfe G
RG
Rosenblatt
Charles
C