We explore the alignment of various achiral liquid crystals on films of aligned double-stranded helical DNA. In all cases and both for the nematic and smectic A phases, we find a distinctly chiral interfacial structure, with the mean orientation of the liquid crystal in contact with the DNA-treated surfaces chirally rotated through a substantial angle with respect to the mean DNA orientation. This rotation originates in the chirality of double-tranded DNA and depends on the liquid crystal molecular structure.Wedicuss the role of dipolar and hydrophobic coupling in determining the observed orientation.
Liquid crystal alignment on a chiral surface : interfacial interaction with sheared DNA films / M. Nakata, G. Zanchetta, M. Buscaglia, T. Bellini, N.A. Clark. - In: LANGMUIR. - ISSN 0743-7463. - 24:18(2008), pp. 10390-10394.
Liquid crystal alignment on a chiral surface : interfacial interaction with sheared DNA films
G. ZanchettaSecondo
;M. Buscaglia;T. BelliniPenultimo
;
2008
Abstract
We explore the alignment of various achiral liquid crystals on films of aligned double-stranded helical DNA. In all cases and both for the nematic and smectic A phases, we find a distinctly chiral interfacial structure, with the mean orientation of the liquid crystal in contact with the DNA-treated surfaces chirally rotated through a substantial angle with respect to the mean DNA orientation. This rotation originates in the chirality of double-tranded DNA and depends on the liquid crystal molecular structure.Wedicuss the role of dipolar and hydrophobic coupling in determining the observed orientation.Pubblicazioni consigliate
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