Alignment of columnar phase confined in polydimethylsiloxane microchannels

ABSTRACTThe alignment of a discotic liquid crystal confined in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) channels with a rectangular cross-section is studied. The microchannels were produced in PDMS using the mold-replica technique. In the PDMS channels, the disc-like molecules of the disogen were found to adopt an edge-on anchoring at the PDMS surface, and macroscopically, the discogen layer is planarly aligned. Using Newton colour scale technique it was revealed that discotic columns were aligned parallel to the channels.