title: A ferroelectric liquid crystal conglomerate composed of racemic molecules
abstract: We describe the design and synthesis of a ferroelectric liquid crystal composed of racemic molecules. The ferroelectric polarization results from spontaneous polar symmetry breaking in a fluid smectic. The ferroelectric phase is also chiral, resulting in the formation of a mixture of macroscopic domains of either handedness at the isotropic-to-liquid crystal phase transition. This smectic liquid crystal is thus a fluid conglomerate. Detailed investigation of the electrooptic and polarization current behavior within individual domains in liquid crystal cells shows the thermodynamically stable structure to be a uniformly tilted smectic bow-phase (banana phase), with all layer pairs homochiral and ferroelectric (SmC(S)P(F)).
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal Materials Research Center, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309-0215, USA. Department of Physics and Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal Materials Research Center, University.
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Walba
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Korblova
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shao
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Maclennan
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Link
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Glaser
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Clark