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Measuring Magnetically-Tuned Ferroelectric Polarization in Liquid Crystals
Published on: August 15, 2018
Electric field-induced interfacial instability in a ferroelectric nematic liquid crystal
Marcell Tibor Máthé1,2, Bendegúz Farkas1,2, László Péter1
1Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner Research Centre for Physics, P.O. Box 49, Budapest, 1525, Hungary.
Abstract:
Studies of sessile droplets and fluid bridges of a ferroelectric nematic liquid crystal in externally applied electric fields are presented. It is found that above a threshold, the interface of the fluid with air undergoes a fingering instability or ramification, resembling to Rayleigh-type instability observed in charged droplets in electric fields or circular drop-type instabilities observed in ferromagnetic liquids in magnetic field. The frequency dependence of the threshold voltage was determined in various geometries. The nematic director and ferroelectric polarization direction was found to point along the tip of the fingers that appear to repel each other, indicating that the ferroelectric polarization is essentially parallel to the director. The results are interpreted in connection to the Rayleigh and circular drop-type instabilities.
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