Observation of a pretransitional effect near a virtual smectic-A--smectic-C* transition.
Unusual softening of the layer compression modulus B has been observed near the phase boundary where the smectic-C* phase vanishes in a naphtalene-based liquid crystal mixture. From the systematic study of x-ray and layer compression measurements, this unusual effect is attributed to the pretransitional softening near a virtual smectic-A-smectic-C* phase transition in the smectic-A phase, which no longer appears on the thermoequilibrium phase diagram. This phenomenon is similar but not equivalent to supercritical behavior.
Shibahara
S
S
Department of Organic and Polymeric Materials, Tokyo Institute of Technology, O-okayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8552, Japan.
Takanishi
Y
Y
Yamamoto
J
J
Ogasawara
T
T
Ishikawa
K
K
Yokoyama
H
H
Takezoe
H
H