Columnar discotic liquid-crystalline oxadiazoles as electron-transport materials

A range of discoid species with benzene or triazine cores and three (trialkoxyaryl)oxadiazole arms have been synthesized. 1,3,5-tris{5-[3,4,5-tris(octyloxy)phenyl]-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-yl}benzene has been studied in detail; it exhibits a columnar discotic liquid-crystalline mesophase between 38 and about 210 degreesC. The time-of-flight electron mobility at room-temperature varies from about 10(-3) to 10(-4) cm(2) V-1 s(-1), indicating these materials may find applications in organic electronics.