Synthesis and Liquid Crystalline Properties of the Compounds Consisting of a Schiff Base Type Mesogen and a Dyad Type Aromatic Ester Structure Interconnected Through the Central Hexamethylene Spacer

A series of compounds consisting of 4'-oxybenzylidene-4-n-butylaniline, a mesogen, and a p-substituted phenoxyterephthaloyl structure a non-mesogen, interconnected through a central hexamethylene spacer were synthesized and their thermal behavior and liquid crystallinity were studied. p-Substituents included in this study are H, Cl, CN, $NO_2,\;n-C_4H_9O$ and phenyl groups. The compounds having phenyl and $n-C_4H_9O$ substituents are enantiotropic and form smectic-A(SA) and nematic (N) phases. The compound with $NO_2$ substituent is monotropic and forms only a nematic phase on heating the solid, whereas it forms nematic as well as $S_A$ phases on cooling the isotropic liquid. The rest compounds were found to be non-liquid crystalline. This is in great contrast to the fact that the monomesogenic model compound 4'-n-hexyloxybenzylidine-4-n-butylaniline forms $S_B,\;S_C,\;S_A$ and N phases enantiotropically.