Measurement of the photorefractive space-charge field in a ferroelectric mesogen

We report on the measurement of the photorefractive space-charge field in a chiral smectic C mesophase. The liquid crystal is intrinsically photoconducting and undoped. The space-charge field amplitude, obtained from a model connecting the induced refractive index modulation with the electric fields within the medium, is only 1% of the applied field. Nonetheless, high refractive index modulations Dn;1023 can be obtained because of the high spontaneous birefringence of the mesophase. The use of the standard models for inorganic crystalline photorefractive materials would have given a space-charge field amplitude two orders of magnitude higher.