Tailoring of Selective Chemical Reaction via Liquid Crystals Integrated with Organic Ionics

Abstract

Liquid crystals (LCs) have been used for reporting a variety of chemical reactions via the amplification ability resulting from the combination of anisotropic nature and long-range molecular ordering.1 However, the relatively low selectivity to specific chemicals has hindered their potential. Here, we propose simple and versatile design rules to control not only selectivity but sensitivity by decorating the interface with organic ionics (OIs). We demonstrated the OI-LC film to immediately sense and optically report the exposure of a specific gas molecule (acetic acid) at very low concentration (< 1 ppm) by electrostatic interaction of the head group of OI to specific functional group. Furthermore, we showed their characteristics are controllable by modulating the length of carbon chain and type of counter ion in OIs. The results represent a good agreement between the experimental and theoretical exploration. This work was supported by the NRF (2021R1A4A1030944 & 2021R1A2C2095010)