title: Unusual polarity-dependent patterns in a bent-core nematic liquid crystal under low-frequency ac field.
abstract: Electric-field-induced patterns of diverse morphology have been observed over a wide frequency range in a recently synthesized bent-core nematic (BCN) liquid crystal. At low frequencies (up to ∼25 Hz), the BCN exhibited unusual polarity-dependent patterns. When the amplitude of the ac field was enhanced, these two time-asymmetrical patterns turned into time-symmetrical prewavylike stripes. At ac frequencies in the middle-frequency range (∼50-3000 Hz), zigzag patterns were detected whose obliqueness varied with the frequency. Finally, if the frequency was increased above 3 kHz, the zigzag pattern was replaced by another, prewavylike pattern, whose threshold voltage depended on the frequency; however, the wave vector did not. For a more complete characterization, material parameters such as elastic constants, dielectric permittivities, and the anisotropy of the diamagnetic susceptibility were also determined.
authors.affiliation: School of Information Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Ying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xiang
authors.affiliation: School of Information Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Meng-jie
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: School of Information Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Ming-Ya
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner Research Centre for Physics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, H-1121 Budapest, Konkoly Thege Miklós út 29-33, Hungary.
authors.forename: Péter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Salamon
authors.affiliation: Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner Research Centre for Physics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, H-1121 Budapest, Konkoly Thege Miklós út 29-33, Hungary.
authors.forename: Nándor
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Éber
authors.affiliation: Institute for Solid State Physics and Optics, Wigner Research Centre for Physics, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, H-1121 Budapest, Konkoly Thege Miklós út 29-33, Hungary.
authors.forename: Ágnes
authors.initials: Á
authors.lastname: Buka