Induction of selective reflection bands by a pulsed electric field in layers of chiral liquid crystals

The effect of the induction and “triplet” splitting of intense selective reflection bands has been experimentally revealed in chiral liquid crystals in a pulsed electric field. The effect is associated with the strong deformation of the helicoid of a chiral liquid crystal in the pulsed field and with the conservation of its step even at field amplitudes exceeding the critical field of the untwisting of the cholesteric helix. Intense polarization-sensitive light reflection bands appear in the spectral ranges where higher orders of selective reflection are forbidden for the unperturbed chiral liquid crystal.