Electro-optic and dynamic studies of biphenyl benzoate ferroelectric liquid crystals

We present electro-optic and dynamic properties on three homologous of biphenyl benzoate series of ferroelectric liquid crystals (FLCs) exhibiting the chiral smectic C phase (SmC*). The three compounds present high spontaneous polarization and show the SmC*–SmA*–N* phase sequence. Dielectric spectroscopy was used to provide the dynamics and dipolar ordering of the ferroelectric phase. The Goldstone relaxation mode was studied for sample cells on planar geometry without a DC bias voltage. The rotational viscosity corresponding to molecular motions in the SmC* phase was determined from dielectric measurements. The Arrhenius-type behavior of the rotational viscosity was found and the corresponding activation energies were evaluated.