Spontaneous Ferroelectric Order in a Bent-Core Smectic Liquid Crystal of Fluid Orthorhombic Layers
Macroscopic polarization density, characteristic of ferroelectric phases, is stabilized by dipolar intermolecular interactions. These are weakened as materials become more fluid and of higher symmetry, limiting ferroelectricity to crystals and to smectic liquid crystal stackings of fluid layers. We report the SmAP{sub F}, the smectic of fluid polar orthorhombic layers that order into a three-dimensional ferroelectric state, the highest-symmetry layered ferroelectric possible and the highest-symmetry ferroelectric material found to date. Its bent-core molecular design employs a single flexible tail that stabilizes layers with untilted molecules and in-plane polar ordering, evident in monolayer-thick freely suspended films. Electro-optic response reveals the three-dimensional orthorhombic ferroelectric structure, stabilized by silane molecular terminations that promote parallel alignment of the molecular dipoles in adjacent layers.
- Research Organization:
- Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE SC OFFICE OF SCIENCE (SC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC02-98CH10886
- OSTI ID:
- 1041973
- Report Number(s):
- BNL-97651-2012-JA; SCIEAS; TRN: US201212%%384
- Journal Information:
- Science (Washington, D.C.), Vol. 332, Issue 6025; ISSN 0036-8075
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
New examples of ferroelectric nematic materials showing evidence for the antiferroelectric smectic-Z phase
The smectic ZA phase: Antiferroelectric smectic order as a prelude to the ferroelectric nematic