Addition reaction of mesomorphic malonate-based dendrimers (up to the fourth generation) with C 60 gave liquid-crystalline fullerene derivatives. The cyanobiphenyl unit was used as liquid-crystalline promoter. The malonates presented nematic and/or smectic A phases. The fullerenes showed only smectic A phases, with the exception of the second generation dendrimer for which smectic A and nematic phases were observed. The supramolecular organization of the fullerene-based molecular units within the smectic A layers was investigated by X-ray diffraction. Two structural regimes were determined. For the low generation dendrimers, the supramolecular organization is determined by steric factors. For the high generation dendrimers, the mesogenic groups impose a microphase organization: due to lateral extension of the branching part of the molecule, the cyanobiphenyl groups arrange in a parallel fashion as in classical smectic A phases, the rest of the macromolecule being located between the mesogenic sublayers.{Basis of a presentation given at Materials Discussion No. 4,[11][12][13][14]
Addition reaction of the malonate-based second-generation ferrocene-containing liquid-crystalline dendrimer 16 to [60]fullerene led to the title compound 1. Molecule 1 showed good solubility
in common organic solvents and good thermal stability. Examination of its mesomorphic properties
revealed the presence of an enantiotropic smectic A phase, which was identified by polarized optical
microscopy from the observation of typical focal−conic and homeotropic textures. The dendritic addend
16 exhibited similar properties as those of the fullerene-based dendrimer. The results described in this
report open the way to the elaboration of fullerene-containing liquid-crystalline macromolecules.
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