Structural Phase Transition in Liquid Crystal Doped with Gold Nanoparticles

The influence of the inclusion of the dodecanethiol functionalized gold particles (with diameter 3-5 nm) on the structural transitions was investigated. The studied samples were based on the nematic liquid crystal 4-(trans-4'-n-hexylcyclohexyl)-isothiocyanatobenzene (6CHBT). The volume concentration of the gold particles was $ϕ_1 = 2 × 10^{-4}$ and $ϕ_2 = 10^{-3}$. The obtained results showed that the inclusion of the gold particles in the 6CHBT liquid crystal increases the sensitivity of such system on the external magnetic field.