Dynamics of surface-stabilized ferroelectric liquid crystals at the alignment layer surface studied by total-reflection ellipsometry

The reorientation dynamics of surface-stabilized ferroelectric liquid cryst als (SSFLCs) at the substrate surface have been studied by time-resolved sp ectroellipsometry (TRSE). The results of total-reflection TRSE indicate tha t the surface motion of SSFLC molecules is hindered by a strong anchoring s ystem. The observed dependence of the ellipsometric parameter psi on the or ienting layer material is discussed in terms of the competitive effects of the surface tilt angle and the strength of the surface anchoring effect. It is also demonstrated that TRSE can analyze the mode of motion of SSFLC mol ecules in three-dimensional space and can therefore characterize the hyster esis properties of the SSFLC cell in terms of its structural changes.