Dielectric technique to measure the twist elastic constant of liquid crystals: The case of a bent-core material

The effect of director pretilt on the twist magnetic Freedericksz transition of nematics was investigated in a planar cell. The director configuration was calculated as a function of magnetic inductance. The dielectric and optical response of the nematic liquid crystal was numerically modeled. A dielectric measurement method for determining the elastic constant K-22 is presented. The influence of the conditions for the Mauguin effect is discussed. The theoretical predictions were confirmed by our experiments. Experimental data for all elastic constants of a bent-core nematic material are presented and discussed.