Dipole moments and dielectric properties of fluorine substituted nematic liquid crystals

The effect of lateral fluorine substituents on the dielectric properties of a range of nematic liquid crystals is reported. Measurements of dipole moments and electric permittivities have been made and used to calculate Kirkwood correlation factors over a range of temperature. The results show that the extent and nature of dipole correlations are important considerations in determining the magnitude of the dielectric anisotropy in these materials. Correlation factors up to 1.4 are found, providing good evidence for the presence of parallel dipole associations.