Effect of alkyl chains on the structural and optical properties of nH6BiN orthoconic antiferroelectric liquid crystals: Insights from DFT calculations

Abstract

This research presents a detailed computational study of a homologous series of orthoconic antiferroelectric liquid crystalline compounds, nH6BiN (where n = 1 to 6), employing Density Functional Theory (DFT) with the B3LYP functional and 6-311G(d,p) basis set. We optimized the molecular geometry and used it as an input file for analyzing thermodynamic properties, vibrational spectroscopy, and evaluating non-linear optical (NLO) properties to investigate the impact of terminal chain length on these compounds. The electronic structure analysis, including HOMO-LUMO gap and reactivity parameters, indicated consistent electronic properties across the series. Raman spectroscopy confirmed structural regularity, with characteristic vibrational modes. Notably, non-linear optical properties enhanced with chain length, as evidenced by increasing dipole moments, polarizabilities, and hyperpolarizabilities. The results highlight the influence of terminal chain length on the structural, electronic, and optical properties of the nH6BiN compounds, providing valuable insights for material design. This comprehensive study provides insights into the influence of terminal chain length on the molecular properties of the nH6BiN series, offering a foundation for their potential application in advanced material science.