Flexoelectricity in chiral nematic liquid crystals as a driving mechanism for the twist-bend and splay-bend modulated phases

We present a continuum theoretical model describing the impact of chirality on nematic systems with large flexoelectricity. As opposed to achiral materials, where only one type of the modulated structure can exist in a given material, the model predicts that chirality can stabilize several modulated phases, which have already been observed experimentally.