Determination of the order parameter in nematic liquid crystal confined to anopore membranes

The most experimental methods using for determination of the order parameter in the nematic liquid crystal (NLC) require the sample to be microscopically oriented.It has been shown that the confinement of NLC to inorganic filters with regular pores provides a convenient tool for the orientation of the sample in dielectric experiments. Orientational order in the nematic phase of liquid crystal confined to Anopore membranes is measured by dielectric spectroscopy. The nematic order parameter calculated from the ratio between the dynamics of the fast and the slow processes in the 4-n- pentyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl is presented. A method for calculation of order parameter in NLC from the dielectric strengths of processes assigned to hindered rotation and tumbling about the molecular short axis is described.