Synthesis and liquid crystalline properties of (S)-[4-n-alkyloxy-benzoyloxyphenyl]-4 '- [(2-n-alkyloxy)propionyloxylbenzoate

New series of chiral liquid crystalline compounds, (S)-[4-n-alkyloxy-benzoy loxyphenyl]-4'-[(2-n-alkyloxy)propionyloxy]benzoate (QMn/m), were synthesis ed. Polymorphism of the new compounds was investigated by polarising micros copy and differential scanning calorimetry. All members of the homologous s eries showed enantiotropic SmC* and N* mesophases except one compound havin g the longest alkyl chain in both terminal groups. The spontaneous polarisa tion of these ferroelectric liquid crystalline compounds is about 110-130 n C/cm(2). The temperature dependence of the dielectric permittivity was meas ured for all the compounds studied. Several ferroelectric binary mixtures w ere prepared in order to get a wide enantiotropic chiral SmC* phase at ambi ent temperature.