title: Confinement-induced orientational order in a ferroelectric liquid crystal containing dispersed aerosils.
abstract: The study of the smectic-A to chiral smectic-C(*) phase transition of the liquid crystal S-(+)-[4-(2(')-methyl butyl) phenyl 4(')-n-octylbiphenyl-4-carboxylate] (CE8) containing dispersed hydrophilic aerosils reveals novel properties, important to understanding quenched disorder and confinement in ferroelectric liquid crystals. Smectic layer compression leads to a distribution of transition temperatures inducing smearing of the macroscopic data across the transition. A pronounced confinement-induced pretransitional tilted order is observed.
authors.affiliation: National Centre for Scientific Research Demokritos, 153 10 Aghia Paraskevi, Greece.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Cordoyiannis
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nounesis
authors.forename: Vid
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bobnar
authors.forename: Samo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kralj
authors.forename: Zdravko
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Kutnjak