On peculiarities of the nematic behavior in the field of ultrasonic shear waves

Abstract

The peculiarities of the orientational transition in a homeotropic layer of a nematic liquid crystal (NLC) under obliquely and normally incident shear waves have been investigated for the frequency range where the viscous wavelength in an NLC is smaller than the layer thickness, while the wavelengths of an elastic wave in the NLC and a shear wave in the solid substrate (plate) are larger than this parameter. The data obtained are analyzed within the theoretical models postulating different mechanisms of orientational effect of ultrasound on NLC for the oblique and normal geometries.