The liquid crystal, 4′-cyano-4-biphenyl[4-(4-pentenyloxy)] benzoate (CBPB) has been chemically bonded to silica and the resulting material's interfacial properties examined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The spectral features of the nitrile stretching region for the chemically anchored system were significantly less complex than those obtained from samples of silica physically coated with CBPB. Further when CBPB was physically coated onto the chemically modified surface, its interactions with the substrate were reduced significantly.