Investigation of Switching Behavior in a Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal Aligned on Obliquely Deposited SiO Films

Abstract

The effect of oblique evaporation of SiO on the chevron structure and the switching behavior in a ferroelectric liquid crystal have been investigated by means of the X-ray diffraction and the stroboscopic micrographs. It is found experimentally that the chevron direction and the domain structure appearing during the switching are determined by the direction of incidence of evaporated SiO. On the basis of the experimental results, it is clarified that the bow and the stern of the boat-shaped domain correspond to +2π and -2π internal disclinations, respectively. The structure of the zig-zag defect is determined.