The influence of goethite nanorods on structural transitions in liquid crystal 6CHBT

This work is devoted to the study of composite system of liquid crystal 4-(trans-4-n-hexylcyclohexyl)-isothiocyanato-benzene (6CHBT) doped with lath-like goethite magnetic nanoparticles with the concentration of 0.01 vol%. The structural transitions in ferronematic samples were observed by dielectric measurements in a capacitor made of ITO-coated glass electrodes as well as by polarizing optical microscopy. Due to the presence of magnetic particles a decrease of the magnetic Fréedericksz transition was observed. The response of ferronematics to very low magnetic fields is also presented which opens the door towards application possibilities such as low magnetic fields sensors.