Recovery and stabilization of a reversed phase sequence in a ternary liquid crystal mixture

The nOHFBBB1M7 (n =10) compound, 10OHF, shows a reversed SmC*$_{FI2}$ - SmC* phase sequence, unique among all known antiferroelectric liquid crystals. This reversed phase sequence is stabilized upon doping with 9OTBBB1M7(C9) or 11OTBBB1M7(C11). In contrast, doping with homologous compounds (n = 9, 11, or 12) eliminates the SmC*$_{FI2}$ phase. One 10OHF/11OHF mixture without the SmC*$_{FI2}$ phase was selected for further studies. Adding C9 into this mixture revives the reversed phase sequence. Unexpectedly, even though 11OHF destabilizes the SmC*$_{FI2}$ phase in binary mixtures with 10OHF, it significantly increases the SmC*$_{FI2}$ temperature range in 10OHF/11OHF/C9 ternary mixtures. The extended temperature range is important for device applications.