Abstract
The electric-field dependence of the reorientation motion of a nematic liquid crystal, 5CB (4-<i>n</i>-pentyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl), has been studied by microsecond time-resolved infrared spectroscopy. A rectangular pulsed electric field with a short pulse duration (2 ms) and a low repetition rate (5 Hz) was used to examine the liquid crystal (LC) response in a silicon cell. The motion of the rigid core part (the cyanobiphenyl group) of 5CB was monitored by the CN stretch band and that of the flexible part (the pentyl group) by the pentyl CH stretch band. The response of the LC to the pulsed electric field consists of two components, the slow component and the fast component. The slow component is common to the rigid core and the flexible parts of 5CB. The voltage dependence of the slow component exhibits a clear threshold, indicating that this component corresponds to a cooperative motion of the 5CB molecules. The fast component is specific to the flexible part and shows exponential rise and decay behavior patterns. This observation suggests that the fast component corresponds to some noncooperative motions which are characteristic of the pentyl group. It is most likely that the internal rotation around the C(biphenyl)-C(pentyl) bond is responsible for the fast component. It is suggested that the LC molecules near the cell interface play a key role in the primary stage of the reorientation motion under an applied electric field.
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