Conformational Effect on Macroscopic Chirality Modification of Cholesteric Mesophases by Photochromic Azobenzene Dopants

Azobenzenes having different positional substituents were dissolved in cholesteric liquid crystals to make cholesteric pitches tunable by photoisomerization. E-to-Z photoisomerization of 3,3‘-disubstituted or 2,2‘-dimethyl-3,3‘-disubstituted azobenzenes resulted in a moderate change or even no change in the maximum wavelengths of reflectivity of the cholesteric phase, whereas azobenzene or 4,4‘-disubstituted azobenzenes showed much bigger changes. The difference in the conformations between the E- and Z-isomers of the azobenzenes is discussed to explain the observed characteristics. The photoinduced modification of helical pitches by photoisomerization of achiral azobenzenes was identical between a pair of enantiomeric cholesteric solvents, suggesting no preferred intrinsic handedness of the achiral azobenzenes. Experimental results with the corresponding chiral azobenzene suggested that the contribution of the conformation of the azobenzene to the effective helical twisting power is more pronounced than that of the molecular chirality arising from the asymmetric carbon at the terminal alkyl substituents. The photoinduced shortening or lengthening of the helical pitch seems to be determined crucially by the thermal characteristics of the cholesteric liquid crystals.