FT-IR Spectroscopic Studies on Reorientation of Ferroelectric Liquid Crystals in a Thermoreversible Gel Network

Time-resolved FTIR spectroscopy with polarized light is employed to study structure and mobility of chiral liquid crystals in mixtures with thermoreversible gels of different concentration (≤ 2 mass %). The formation of the gel stabilized structure and orientation of the liquid crystals while maintaining-for gel former concentration ≤ 1 mass %-its mobility comparable to the pure compound. Applying an external electric field during the formation of the gel enables us to imprint a preferred orientation of the liquid crystals in the mixture. This results in a memory effect similar to that observed in liquid crystalline elastomers.