EFFECTS OF SURFACE TOPOGRAPHY ON FORMATION OF DEFECTS IN SmC* DEVICES EXPLAINED USING AN ALTERNATIVE CHEVRON DESCRIPTION

An alternative description of the layer structure of SmC* devices is used to consider the cause for wide variations in the zig-zag defect density in such devices using the same alignment layer material. In this paper, we show how the topography of the surface layer due to imperfect coating techniques and materials promotes the formation of zig-zag defects. We show that if the alignment surface slope is greater than the pretilt, high densities of zig-zag defects are likely to be present.