3D Hierarchical Twists in Polar Fluids: Chirality Regulation by Ultralow Electric Field

Abstract

The recently discovered helical polar fluid adopts a spontaneous chiral symmetry breaking (CSB) driven by combination of polarization escape, conformational chirality, and elastic effects. Ferroelectric nematic and ferroelectric smectic phases are intrinsically chiral in the ground state and can be stabilized in an extrinsic twisted configuration through surface anchoring. Herein, the study introduces extrinsic CSB as a novel technique in chiral engineering. To demonstrate this concept, the extrinsic structure of a helielectric conical mesophase (HEC)—3D chiral system—is constructed. Considering the challenges of controlling chirality at the macroscopic scale owing to magnetic fields, light, and fluid vortex motion, the proposed 3D chiral system enables chirality (twist) modulation through an ultralow electric field, thereby controlling unique diffraction pattern and circular polarized light-switching capabilities.