Electric field and thickness effect on the electroclinic temporal behavior in a chiral smectic-Aliquid crystal

We measured the temporal behavior of the electroclinic effect in a chiral smectic-A liquid crystal by monitoring the optical response to a voltage pulse. A simple formula was shown to describe the time behavior of the induced tilt angle {Θ}. The electroclinic response time {τ} increased for decreasing values of the applied electric field E and the cell gap d. The static value of {Θ} did not depend on d and remained linear in E. We conclude that bulk interactions determine the equilibrium value of {Θ}. The increase of {τ} is attributed to a hindrance by the boundaries of the switching along the entire thickness of the cell.