Discotic liquid crystals stabilized by interionic interactions: imidazolium ion-anchored paraffinic triphenylene

Incorporation of imidazolium ion functionalities into the paraffinic side-chain termini of a triphenylene derivative resulted in stabilization of a columnar mesophase of its liquid crystalline assembly, which was retained over a wider temperature range down to 4 degreesC by an externally added imidazolium-based ionic liquid.