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Small lateral substituents were introduced in the proximity of the azo group to modify the rate of the thermal Z-E isomerization of photosensitive mesogens with lactate chiral unit. It was found that the position of the substituents in the azobenzene core significantly affects the rate of their thermal isomerization. The stability of Z-isomers of several studied compounds is comparable to that of compounds with a complex molecular structures designed for optical data storage.