Different kind of measurements were performed on the liquid crystal nonyloxycyanobiphenyl (9OCB) to carry out a study of the molecular dynamics in the smectic A (SmA), nematic (N), and isotropic (I) phases as well as an exhaustive analysis of both the SmA-to-N and N-to-I phase transitions. For the dynamic study, broadband dielectric spectroscopy (102 to 1.8 x 109 Hz) was used. Two orientations (parallel and perpendicular) of the molecular director with regard to the probing electric field were investigated. From this study, the static dielectric permittivity was obtained in both alignments and, in addition, the molecular motions that contribute to each one were discussed. The static dielectric data together with specific heat and volumetric determinations were analyzed, proving that both phase transitions are weakly first order, displaying a nearly tricritical behavior. However, the width of metastable regions seems to be dependent on the physical magnitude, although specific heat and volumetric determinations allow for comparable results. It should be noticed that the temperature derivative of the static dielectric permittivity, specific heat, and isobaric thermal expansion coefficient data derived from volumetric determinations are related to each other by scaling relationships.

The two-component system octyloxycyanobiphenyl (8OCB) + decyloxycyanobiphenil (10OCB) has been studied by means of modulated differential scanning calorimetry as well as optical microscopy. The general trends of the phase diagram are similar to the two-component system octylcyanobiphenyl (8CB) + decylcyanobiphenil (10CB), previously published. Evidence for the existence of a TCP have been reported, the molar composition being about 0.33 of 10OCB. Additionally, the smectic mesophase of the 8OCB + 10OCB mixtures has been unmistakably characterized through optical measurements as smectic A for the whole composition range.

An exhaustive analysis of the critical behavior of the nematic to isotropic (N-to-I) phase transition on the liquid crystal hexyloxycyanobiphenyl (6OCB) has been performed. To do so, the accurate evolution of various physical magnitudes (static dielectric permittivity data together with specific heat and volumetric determinations) around the N-to-I transition has been required. The specific heat data with the isobaric thermal expansion coefficient and the derivative of the static dielectric permittivity with temperature have been proven to be related to each other by a scaling relationship. However, some discrepancies have been observed for the dielectric data in relation to such a scaling relationship and the critical behavior of the N-to-I phase transition. All information has been used to get some insight on the strength of the first-order N-to-I phase transition of the 6OCB in relation to the other counterparts in the nOCB series of compounds.

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