Innovative organic materials offer exciting opportunities to develop next-generation technologies with improved functionality and novel features. A class of organic charge-transfer materials, donor-acceptor columnar liquid crystals (DACLCs), has unique properties and functionality that exhibit great potential for innovation in materials chemistry. Recent studies have begun to highlight possible applications for DACLCs in the areas of organic electronics, data storage, and encryption devices. Here, we explore the potential of DACLCs to function as organic-based optical waveguiding materials. In addition to achieving the functionality of the traditional waveguides, potential DACLCs waveguides are attractive for they are sustainable, light-weight, and finely-reconfigurable alternative with potentially lower processing costs. We illustrate an iterative approach to manipulate the optical and physical properties of DACLCs by varying the side chains composition on the aromatic cores of donor and acceptor component molecules. We demonstrate the tunability of DACLCs texture towards improved efficiency as writable waveguide medium.

Investigation of donor-acceptor columnar liquid crystals side chains for organic-based waveguiding materials

ACS Spring 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.