Chiral liquid crystalline compounds from D-(+)-glucose

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/0040-4020(95)00386-M

D-(+)-Glucose was used as a starting material to prepare four potentially useful chiral liquid crystalline molecules 2, 3, 4 and 5 having multiple chiral centers in their rigid cores. It is clear that 2 indeed incorporates properties essential for ferroelectric liquid crystals, i.e., a chiral smectic C phase with an induced spontaneous polarization of about 23 nC/cm². Compound 3, on the other hand, shows only a nematic phase, while 4 merely shows a sharp melting point and 5 is an oil.