Substituted amino alcohols as chiral dopants

Abstract

The invention relates to the use of a substituted, chiral amino alcohol, comprising one or more structural units of the following formula (1), wherein the abbreviations A, Y, R1 and R3 to R5 have the following meanings: is a covalent bond or a hydrocarbon group, Y is a covalent bond or a hydrocarbon group that can have an oxygen atom at one of its ends through which it is bonded to R, Ris an aliphatic or heterocyclic or aromatic radical, the carbon chain of which may be interrupted by one or more B groups, Ris selected from the group consisting of (a) aliphatic radicals, wherein individual carbon atoms may be replaced by oxygen atoms or carbonyl groups, and wherein the carbon chains of same radicals may be optionally interrupted by a B group, and (b) araliphatic, cycloaliphatic, aromatic and heterocyclic radicals, wherein the carbon chain can be interrupted by one or more B structural elements and/or by one or more D coupling groups, R, Rare hydrogen or aliphatic or araliphatic substituents, which are independent of one another, wherein the carbon chain can be interrupted by one or more B groups, B is selected from polymerizable or crosslinkable structural elements from the group comprising C-C-alkenyl, C-C-alkenyloxy, —C═C—, —CH═CH—COO—, —CH═CH—, —CX═CH—COO— with X═C-C-alkyl, and the trans-form of —OOC—CH═CH—COO—, and D is selected from —O—, —NH—, —N(CH)—, —N(CH)—, —SO—, —CO—, —COO—, —CH═CH—, —OCOO—, —OCH—, CH═N, —CFCF—, as a chiral dopant in liquid crystal (mixtures), e.g., in electro-optical systems.