Hydrodynamics of cholesteric liquid crystals in the coarse-grained limit

Abstract

The hydrodynamical behaviour of cholesteric liquid crystals has been considered in the limit of low amplitude and low frequency distortions and motions. It is shown that there are interesting analogies with superfluid-hydrodynamics, such as the fountain effect, thermal superconductivity and temperature wave propagation. In certain situations, there is an unusual formation of a boundary layer at low velocities, and in certain others the properties resemble those of percolation in porous media. Results concerning some special phenomena peculiar to cholesteric liquid crystals are also presented. Finally it is pointed out that there should be two types of second sound in chiral smectic C.