Abstract

Novel liquid crystalline materials based on chiral calamitic 1,2,4- and 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives were synthesized and their thermotropic mesomorphism investigated by polarizing optical microscopy and differential scanning calorimetry. The structures of their smectic phases were investigated by X-ray diffraction. The existence of ferroelectric properties in the smectic C phase was also studied. © 2008 Taylor & Francis.