Phase winding and flow alignment in freely suspended films of smectic-<i>C</i>liquid crystals

Abstract

We present the first experimental study of shear-flow--induced behavior in a two-dimensional anisotropic fluid: circular, freely suspended films of smectic-C liquid crystals. Depending on the topology of the in-plane director configuration, we observe either a phase winding state, where \ensuremath{\Phi}, the phase defining the director orientation relative to the velocity field, winds up in the center of the film, or, a flow alignment state, where \ensuremath{\Phi} is constant.