Alignment Controls and Switching Characteristics in a Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal with the Phase Sequence of N*-SC *

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Abstract
The switching characteristics in a SC * ferroelectric liquid crystal with the N*-SC * phase sequence, were studied. Two kinds of alignment methods were tried. The rubbing method gave a better alignment than the improved temperature gradient method. Although rubbing confines the molecular direction, the two possible layer directions could be altered by applying a DC electric field. The molecular switching between the up and down polarization states in the rubbing cell showed two characteristic asymmetric behaviors due to the strong monostable surface condition as follows. The response time from the stable to the unstable state was slower by a factor of several tens than that of the reverse process. The slow process was accompanied by the nucleation and growth of an unstable domain, while only a color change was observed in the fast process without any domain nucleation. It was also found that during this process surface molecules stayed unswitched.