Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 23, 2026

Measuring Magnetically-Tuned Ferroelectric Polarization in Liquid Crystals
Published on: August 15, 2018
Self-assembled uniaxial and biaxial multilayer structures in chiral smectic liquid crystals frustrated between ferro-
V P Panov1, N M Shtykov, A Fukuda
1Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering, Trinity College, University of Dublin, Dublin 2, Ireland.
Abstract:
With a view to obtain a molecular model for the subphases produced by the frustration between ferro- and antiferroelectricity in chiral smectic liquid crystals, we report results on two compounds and observe (i) the staircase character of uniaxial Sm C(*)(alpha) itself in the bulk and (ii) the multipeaked characteristic reflection bands due to the modulated helical structures just above the Sm C(*)(A) temperature range. We suggest the emergence of several uniaxial and biaxial subphases. The results show that both types of subphases can be specified by q(T) = [F] / ( [A] + [F] ) in the zero-order approximation; [A] and [F] are the numbers of antiferroelectric and ferroelectric orderings in the unit cell. We consider the basis of both types of subphases, particularly the description of the short-pitch helical structure of Sm C(*)(alpha), in terms of the molecular models so far proposed and emphasize the important role played by the discrete flexoelectric polarization.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Molecules with Multiple Chiral Centers
Chirality
Chiral objects exhibit a sense of handedness when they interact with another chiral object. For example, our left foot can only fit in the left shoe and not in the right shoe. Achiral objects — objects that have...
Structures of Solids
Ionic Crystal Structures
Most monatomic ions behave as charged spheres, and their attraction for ions of opposite charge is the same in every direction. Consequently, stable structures for ionic compounds result (1) when ions of one charge are surrounded by as many ions as possible of the opposite...
Prochirality
Stereoisomerism of Cyclic Compounds

