title: Chiral solutes can seed the formation of enantiomorphic domains in a twist-bend nematic liquid crystal.
abstract: The twist-bend nematic, an enantiomorphic liquid-crystalline phase, exhibited by the structurally symmetric liquid-crystal dimer CB7CB is induced to form a single domain of uniform handedness, in the bulk, by the addition of the dopant chiral solute (S)-1-phenylethanol. Addition of a nonracemic (or scalemic) mixture of both R and S enantiomers of this solute produced equal volumes of P and M chiral domains for the twist-bend nematic phase. This seeding of the domains in an enantiomorphic nematic conglomerate is revealed using deuterium NMR spectroscopy.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemistry, University of Southampton, Highfield, Southampton SO17 1BJ, United Kingdom. jwe@soton.ac.uk
authors.forename: James W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Emsley
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Lesot
authors.forename: Geoffrey R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Luckhurst
authors.forename: Abdelkrim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meddour
authors.forename: Denis
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Merlet