Optically active 2-alkyl-6 (or 7)-nitro-2, 3-dihydrobenzofurans were designed and synthesized as chiral dopants for ferroelectric liquid crystals and nonlinear optical materials. The mixtures containing 7-nitro-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran derivative exhibited large spontaneous polarization, and the second-harmonic generation intensity of 7-nitro-2,3-dihydrobenzofuran derivative was slightly smaller than that of (1-methylheptyloxy)-2-nitrobenzene derivative.