title: Crystal-liquid crystal binary phase diagrams.
abstract: We propose a new theoretical scheme for the binary phase diagrams of crystal-liquid crystal mixtures by a combination of a phase field model of solidification, the Flory-Huggins theory for liquid-liquid mixing and Maier-Saupe-McMillan (FH-MSM) model for nematic and smectic liquid crystal orderings. The phase field theory describes the crystal phase transition of anisotropic organic crystal and/or side chain liquid crystalline polymer crystals while the FH-MSM model explains isotropic, nematic and smectic-A phase transitions. Self-consistent calculations reveal several possible phase diagram topologies of the binary crystal-liquid crystal mixtures. The calculated phase diagrams were found to accord well to the reported experimental results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Polymer Engineering, University of Akron, Akron, Ohio 44325-0301, USA.
authors.forename: Pratyush
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dayal
authors.forename: Rushikesh A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Matkar
authors.forename: Thein
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kyu