title: Intrinsic chiral domains enantioselectively segregated from twisted nematic cells of bent-core mesogens.
abstract: Enantioselective segregation has been attained in the Bx phase of a novel substituted oxadiazole achiral banana-shaped liquid crystal (LC) without introducing any chiral species. This bent-core molecule exhibits LC polymorphism; the higher temperature nematic (N) phase and the lower temperature banana smectic phase (Bx phase), in which spontaneous chiral segregation with (+) and (-) chiral domains occurs with equal probabilities. In twisted cell geometries, extrinsically induced twisted N structures are formed and result in intrinsically chiral conglomerate when the temperature is decreased from N to Bx. The observed optical activity in homochiral Bx phase is comparable to those theoretically predicted and is proportional to the cell thickness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Organic and Polymeric Materials, Tokyo Institute of Technology, O-okayama, Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Suk-Won
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Sungmin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Yoichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takanishi
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ishikawa
authors.forename: Junji
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takezoe