Unusual dielectric and electrical switching behavior in the de Vries smectic A phase of two organosiloxane derivatives

Phys Rev Lett. 2009 Apr 10;102(14):147802. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.102.147802. Epub 2009 Apr 8.

Abstract

X-ray, electrical, electro-optical, and dielectric studies in the de Vries smectic A (SmA) phase of organosiloxane derivatives exhibit features surprisingly different from that of a conventional SmA phase. The switching data show a double peak profile, characteristic of an antiferroelectric (AF) structure. A model with the adjacent smectic layers having an AF-like arrangement and no global tilt correlation is proposed. Observed in molecules with differential interactions between the two termini, these findings have wide ramifications in understanding the minimum layer shrinkage of such systems.

MeSH terms

  • Electric Impedance
  • Models, Chemical*
  • Models, Molecular*
  • Molecular Conformation
  • Organic Chemicals / chemistry*
  • Phase Transition
  • Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted
  • Siloxanes / chemistry*

Substances

  • Organic Chemicals
  • Siloxanes