Abstract
The electro-optic response of a bi-mesogen organosiloxane liquid crystal material confined in a cell with strong surface anchoring is investigated. The specimen displays an increase in the apparent tilt of the optic axis as the temperature is increased and a mono-stable electro-optic response with different response times for switching on and switching off. The cell takes 5 ms to be switched on and 200 µs to be switched off. A stripe-switching regime is observed at high field, with the rate of propagation of the stripes decreasing as the field is increased. A tentative interpretation of this unexpected behaviour is proposed.