Abstract

A series of bidentate Schiff base ligands, 5-((4- nalkoxyphenyl)azo)-N-(nalkyl)-salicylal-dimine (nalkoxy = octyloxy, dodecyloxy, nalkyl=Butyl, nhexyl) homologues, have been synthesized and characterized by IR, NMR, mass spectroscopy and elemental analyses. For all the ligands the nickel(II) and copper (II) complexes have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analyses and IR spectroscopy. The mesomorphic character of these compounds was studied by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and polarizing microscope equipped with a heating and cooling stage. None of the Schiff-base ligands exhibit liquid crystalline properties but some of the copper complexes show a nematic mesophase.