Advanced Materials, Vol.17, No.17, 2123-2123, 2005
Smectic liquid-crystalline colloids by miniemulsion techniques
The preparation of liquid-crystalline colloids with diameters in the range of about 100 to 300 nm is reported. Different preformed smectic polysiloxanes have been transferred into colloids by a miniemulsion process with ionic surfactants. Microscopy of unstained colloids clearly show the smectic layer structure within them (see Figure) and are prove the model of a microphase separation between mesogens and polysiloxane chains in liquid-crystal line polysiloxanes.