From the discovery of the partially bilayer smectic A phase to blue phases in polar liquid crystals

Abstract

The significance of Gray’s cyanobiphenyls in the discovery of the partially bilayer smectic A phase (SmA_d) and in the formulation of mixtures exhibiting the blue phase is described. The properties of the SmA_d phase and its relationships to molecular structures are reviewed. Induced phenomena such as the transformation of nematics into smectics, SmA_d or SmA₁, as well as the opposite transformation of smectics into nematics are described and discussed.

Keywords:

• monolayer smectic A₁
• enhanced monolayer smectic A_1e
• partially bilayer smectic A_d
• bilayer smectic A₂
• induced smectic A_d
• induced smectic A₁
• induced nematic
• re-entrant nematic
• blue phase
• polar nematic compound
• polar smectic compound

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Prof. P.K. Mandal, Prof. S. Urban and Prof. W. Piecek for carefully and critically reading the manuscript and providing useful remarks to arrive at its final form.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by Polish Ministry of Sciences and Higher Education, Key Project POIG.01.03.01-14-016/08 ‘New photonic materials and their advanced applications’ and PBS 847.