Uniform SSFLC director pattern switching

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Abstract
Dynamical and polarisation-dependent transmission intensity measurements on 2.0 μm SSFLC cells clarify that the director pattern profiles are uniform from top to bottom glass plate in the fully-switched, the memory and all transient states. Switching occurs by two processes: a continuous shift on the smectic C cone and a bistable multidomain transition. This behaviour is caused by tilted smectic layers. Removal of this tilt results in a true bistability in which memory and switched states arc nearly indistinguishable and possess high contrast.