Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Journal of the Indian Chemical Society, cilt.103, sa.6, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
In the present study, a new homologous series of chiral azo-ester liquid crystal (S Azo8-14) has been designed to elucidate the role of terminal alkyl chain length on mesomorphic behaviour, photoisomerization, and nonlinear optical properties. The shortest member, S Azo8 , exhibits a broad chiral nematic (N∗) phase, whereas increasing chain length induces the emergence of chiral smectic C (SmC∗) phases, which become enantiotropic for the longer homologues. Photoisomerization studies showed efficient and reversible E -to- Z photoisomerization under UV irradiation for all members of the series. Despite comparable HOMO–LUMO gaps across the series, SAzo8 exhibits the highest nonlinear optical response, suggesting that the terminal alkyl chain length plays a key role in modulating the nonlinear optical properties while the azo-ester core provides the fundamental electronic framework. These findings collectively demonstrate that terminal-chain engineering provides an effective strategy for tuning chiral mesomorphism, photoresponsiveness, and nonlinear optical performance in azo-ester based liquid crystalline systems.