Biomedical subjects

P Barois

Publications and source records attributed to P Barois.

17 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Extension of the resonant scattering technique to liquid crystals without resonant element.

We report X-ray resonant scattering experiments performed on the prototype liquid-crystalline compound MHPOBC doped with a chemical probe containing a resonant atom (selenium). We determined directly for the first time the microscopic 3- and 4-layer structure of the ferrielectric subphases (SmC(FI1)* and SmC(FI2)*) present in MHPOBC. Despite the low fraction of the selenium probe, the resonant signal is strong enough to allow an unambiguous determination of the basic structure of the ferrielectric subphases. These experiments demonstrate that the resonant scattering technique can be extended to liquid crystalline materials without resonant element and may stimulate new studies. A non-resonant Bragg reflection was also found in the SmC(FI1)* phase in pure MHPOBC, consistent with the 3-layer distorted model, but never detected before.

Ferric Compounds↗

PubMed2004

Colloidal structures from bulk demixing in liquid crystals.

This experimental paper deals with phase separations of binary mixtures composed of a continuous liquid crystal phase and an isotropic dispersed phase. In contrast to isotropic binary mixtures, the investigated mixtures do not lead to a full phase separation but to a self-ordering of colloidal particles, as reported earlier (Loudet, J. C. et al. Nature 2000, 407, 611). We present here further aspects of such phase separations which include the kinetics of the phase separation, the origin of the formation of dislocation-like patterns, the influence of surfactants, chiral additives, and temperature on the formed colloidal structures. The present results show that (i) the dislocations in chain arrays can be seen as kinetically frozen defects, (ii) temperature can be used to control the size of the domains formed upon demixing, (iii) a slight change in surface chemistry, via the addition of surfactants, profoundly alters the formed colloidal structures, and (iv) chiral additives allow the formation of unique helical pearl chains which reflect the symmetry of the liquid crystal phase they are embedded in.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2002

Interlayer structures of the chiral smectic liquid crystal phases revealed by resonant X-ray scattering.

The structures of the liquid crystalline chiral subphases exhibited by several materials containing either a selenium or sulphur atom have been investigated using a resonant x-ray scattering technique. This technique provides a unique structural probe for the ferroelectric, ferrielectric, antiferroelectric, and SmC(*)(alpha) phases. An analysis of the scattering features allows the structural models of the different subphases to be distinguished, in addition to providing a measurement of the helical pitch. This paper reports resonant scattering features in the antiferroelectric hexatic phase, the three- and four-layer intermediate phases, the antiferroelectric and ferroelectric phases and the SmC(*)(alpha) phase. The helicoidal pitch has been measured from the scattering peaks in the four-layer intermediate phase as well as in the antiferroelectric and ferroelectric phases. In the SmC(*)(alpha) phase, an investigation into the helical structure has revealed a pitch ranging from 5 to 54 layers in different materials. Further, a strong resonant scattering signal has been observed in mixtures of a selenium containing material with as much as 90% nonresonant material.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Orientational ordering in the chiral smectic-C*FI2 liquid crystal phase determined by resonant polarized x-ray diffraction.

High-resolution resonant polarized x-ray diffraction experiments near the sulfur K edge have been performed on free-standing liquid crystal films exhibiting the chiral smectic-C*FI2 phase. It is widely accepted that this phase has a four-layer repeat unit, but the internal structure of the repeat unit remains controversial. We report different resolved features of the resonant x-ray diffraction peaks associated with the smectic-C*FI2 phase that unambiguously demonstrate that the four-layer repeat unit is locally biaxial about the layer normal and that the measured angle, describing the biaxiality, is in good agreement with optical measurements.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2001

Resonant x-ray scattering study of the antiferroelectric and ferrielectric phases in liquid crystal devices.

Resonant x-ray scattering has been used to investigate the interlayer ordering of the antiferroelectric and ferrielectric smectic C* subphases in a device geometry. The liquid crystalline materials studied contain a selenium atom and the experiments were carried out at the selenium K edge allowing x-ray transmission through glass. The resonant scattering peaks associated with the antiferroelectric phase were observed in two devices containing different materials. It was observed that the electric-field-induced antiferroelectric to ferroelectric transition coincides with the chevron to bookshelf transition in one of the devices. Observation of the splitting of the antiferroelectric resonant peaks as a function of applied field also confirmed that no helical unwinding occurs at fields lower than the chevron to bookshelf threshold. Resonant features associated with the four-layer ferrielectric liquid crystal phase were observed in a device geometry. Monitoring the electric field dependence of these ferrielectric resonant peaks showed that the chevron to bookshelf transition occurs at a lower applied field than the ferrielectric to ferroelectric switching transition.

Journal Article↗

PubMed2000

Colloidal ordering from phase separation in a liquid-crystalline continuous phase

Some binary mixtures exist as a single phase at high temperatures and as two phases at lower temperatures; rapid cooling therefore induces phase separation that proceeds through the initial formation of small particles and subsequent growth and coarsening. In solid and liquid media, this process leads to growing particles with a range of sizes, which eventually separate to form a macroscopically distinct phase. Such behaviour is of particular interest in systems composed of an isotropic fluid and a liquid crystal, where the random distribution of liquid-crystal droplets in an isotropic polymer matrix may give rise to interesting electro-optical properties. Here we report that a binary mixture consisting of an isotropic fluid and a liquid crystal forming the continuous phase does not fully separate into two phases, but self-organizes into highly ordered arrays of monodisperse colloidal droplet chains. We find that the size and spatial organization of the droplets are controlled by the orientational elasticity of the liquid-crystal phase and the defects caused by droplets exceeding a critical size. We expect that our approach to forming monodisperse, spatially ordered droplets in liquid crystals will allow the controlled design of ordered composites that may have useful rheological and optical properties.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1999

Structures of chiral smectic-C mesophases revealed by polarization-analyzed resonant x-ray scattering.

We report polarization-analyzed, resonant x-ray diffraction at the sulfur K edge performed upon free-standing liquid-crystal films. Our studies of the thiobenzoate liquid-crystal enantiomer 10OTBBB1M7 yield the polarization states of resonant satellite peaks arising from characteristic superlattices in the chiral smectic-C (SmC(*)) variant phases, including the antiferroelectric SmC(*)(A), ferrielectric SmC(*)(FI1) and SmC(*)(FI2), as well as SmC(*)(alpha). The observed polarizations agree with the clock model of chiral smectic-C variants, and rule out other proposals made to date for these structures. Data from the 10OTBBB1M7 racemate also support the clock model. Our resonant diffraction results from a thiophene liquid-crystal compound reveal the same superlattice periodicities seen in corresponding antiferroelectric and ferrielectric phases of 10OTBBB1M7.

Journal Article↗

PubMed1996