Physical properties of the nematic liquid crystal, APAPA : Discussion of the measured viscoelastic properties in relation to current theories

Abstract

Measured viscoelastic properties of nematic APAPA are discussed in relation to currently available theories. The comparison is made in terms of reduced Frank elastic constants, reduced Misowicz and Leslie coefficients and the temperature dependences of these parameters. The data used were calculated from light scattering data reported in an earlier paper [1]. It turns out that the measured elastic properties are in reasonable agreement with current theoretical predictions. However, current theories on the viscous behaviour are scarce and ambiguous. No satisfactory comparison of the experimental data with these theories can be made.