Controlling spontaneous chirality in achiral materials: liquid crystal oligomers and the heliconical twist-bend nematic phase

Liquid crystal oligomers, namely dimers, trimers and tetramers, consisting of cyanobiphenyl and benzylideneaniline-based mesogenic units connected by either linear or bent alkoxy or alkyl spacers are reported. These materials, although built from achiral molecules, show the spontaneously chiral heliconical twist-bend nematic (N-TB) phase. We report the relationships between the shape of the oligomer, and the N-TB phase stability, the temperature dependence of the helical pitch length and tilt angle, birefringence, and elastic constants.