Issue 13, 2022

Probing a microviscosity change at the nematic–isotropic liquid crystal phase transition by a ratiometric flapping fluorophore

Abstract

Understanding the microviscosity of soft condensed matter is important to clarify the mechanisms of chemical, physical or biological events occurring at the nanoscale. Here, we report that flapping fluorophores (FLAP) can serve as microviscosity probes capable of detecting small changes. By the ratiometric fluorescence analysis, one of the FLAP probes detects a macroscopic viscosity change of a few cP, occurring at the thermal phase transition of a nematic liquid crystal. We discuss the impact of the chemical structure on the detection capability, and the orientation of the FLAP molecules in the ground and excited states. This work contributes to experimentally providing a molecular picture of liquid crystals, which are often viewed as a continuum.

Graphical abstract: Probing a microviscosity change at the nematic–isotropic liquid crystal phase transition by a ratiometric flapping fluorophore

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
29 okt 2021
Accepted
13 yan 2022
First published
15 yan 2022

Chem. Commun., 2022,58, 2128-2131

Author version available

Probing a microviscosity change at the nematic–isotropic liquid crystal phase transition by a ratiometric flapping fluorophore

R. Kimura, H. Kitakado, T. Yamakado, H. Yoshida and S. Saito, Chem. Commun., 2022, 58, 2128 DOI: 10.1039/D1CC06111A

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements