How to change the sensitivity of liquid crystals in external magnetic field

N. Tomašoviċová¹ - M. Timko¹ - V. Závišová¹ - A. Hashim¹ - J. Jadzyn² - X. Chaud³ - E. Beaugnon³ - P. Kopċanský¹

¹ Institute of Experimental Physics, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Watsonova 47, 04001 Košice, Slovakia
² Institute of Molecular Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Smoluchowskiego 17, 60179 Poznan, Poland
³ High Magnetic Field Laboratory, CNRS, 25 Avenue des Martyrs, Grenoble, France

Abstract
The influence of an external electric and magnetic field on the structural transitions in ferronematics based on thermotropic nematic 4-trans-4'-n-hexyl-cyclohexyl-isothiocyanato-benzene (6CHBT) is studied. Droplets of the nematic phase in the isotropic phase were observed in the solutions of nematogenic 6CHBT dissolved in phenyl isocyanate and 6CHBT dissolved in phenyl isocyanate and doped with the magnetic particles of different shape (nano-rods and chain-like particles). The magneto-dielectric measurements of structural transitions showed the magnetic field induced shift of the phase transition temperature from isotropic to droplet state in a magnetic field up to 12 T. The linear dependence of the temperature of isotropic-droplet state phase transition on the external magnetic field was observed. Figs 5, Refs 24.