Local layer response to electric field in ferroelectric and antiferroelectric liquid crystals measured by time resolved microbeam x-ray diffraction

Abstract

A synchrotron time resolved microbeam X-ray diffraction was applied to the direct and real time measurement of the local layer response of an antiferroelectric liquid crystal. The transient local layer deformation process related to the field induced phase transition was observed. In the ferroelectric (FE) to antiferroelectric(AFE) phase transition process, the layer structure changed from the bookshelf to the quasi-bookshelf within 0.3ms and the transient structure of horizontal chevron appeared. For the AFE to FE transition, the reverse layer deformation occurred within 0.04ms.