title: Mesophase structure and behaviour in bulk and restricted geometry of a dimeric compound exhibiting a nematic-nematic transition.
abstract: We present structural studies of a dimeric compound composed of a central heptyl spacer linking two mesogens consisting of terphenyl units at which two adjacent fluoro groups are attached to each central ring. The terminal rings are linked to pentyl chains as terminal groups. The material exhibits a nematic-nematic transition and a low temperature modulated phase. The higher temperature nematic phase was found to exhibit an anomaly of the bend elastic constant similar to that of the dimers with N-Ntb phase sequence, and the physical properties of the low-temperature nematic phase are similar to those of the known Ntb materials. The structure of the low-temperature modulated smectic/columnar phase is described together with its ability to form freely suspended films and fibres. The relation of the modulated structure to the fibre formation and to the appearance of the labyrinthine instability in freely-suspended films is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nonlinear Phenomena, Institute for Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany. nerea.sebastian@ehu.eus alexey.eremin@ovgu.de.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sebastián
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Tamba
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stannarius
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: de la Fuente
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Salamonczyk
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cukrov
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gleeson
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sprunt
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jákli
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Welch
authors.forename: Z
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ahmed
authors.forename: G H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Mehl
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eremin