Carboxylate compounds, liquid crystal compositions and liquid crystal elements containing said compounds and method of optical modulation using said elements

摘要

In accordance with the present invention, there are provided carboxylate compounds represented by the following formula [A] and liquid crystal material comprising said compounds <IMAGE> [A] wherein R is a group selected from the group consisting of alkyl, alkoxy and halogenated alkyl group of 3-20 carbon atoms, X and Y represent each a group selected from the group consisting of -COO-, -OCO-, -CH2CH2-, -CH2O-, -OCH2-, -S-S-, <IMAGE> or a single bond, A and B represent each a group selected from the group consisting of specific divalent aromatic and alicyclic group such as phenylene, cyclohexylene and tetrahydronaphthalene and R* is an optically active group of 4-20 carbon atoms containing at least one asymmetric carbon atom (hydrogen atoms attached to the carbon atoms of said optically active group may be substituted with halogen atoms), and m and n are each an integer of 0-2, with the proviso that both m and n do not become 0 at the same time.