Liquid crystal (LC) phases are in between solids and liquids with properties of both. Nematic LCs composed of rod-like molecules or particles exhibit long-range orientational order, yielding characteristic birefringence, but they lack positional order, allowing them to flow like a liquid. This combination of properties as well as their sensitivity to external fields make nematic LCs fundamental for optical applications e.g. liquid crystal displays (LCDs). When rod-like particles become bent, spontaneous bend deformations arise in the LC, leading to geometric frustration which can be resolved by complementary twist or splay deformations forming intriguing twist-bend (N_TB) and splay-bend (N_SB) nematic phases. Here, we show experimentally that the elusive N_SB phases can be stabilized in systems of polydisperse micron-sized bent silica rods. Our results open avenues for the realization of N_TB and N_SB phases of colloidal and molecular LCs.

液晶 (LC) 相介于固体和液体之间，具有两者的特性。由棒状分子或颗粒组成的向列 LC 表现出长程定向有序，产生特征双折射，但它们缺乏位置有序，使其像液体一样流动。这种特性的组合以及它们对外部场的敏感性使向列液晶成为光学应用的基础，例如。液晶显示器 (LCD)。当棒状颗粒弯曲时，LC 中会出现自发弯曲变形，导致几何受挫，这可以通过互补扭曲或张开变形形成有趣的扭曲弯曲 ( N _TB ) 和张开弯曲 ( N _{SB ) 来解决}）向列相。在这里，我们通过实验表明，难以捉摸的N _SB相可以在多分散微米级弯曲二氧化硅棒系统中稳定。我们的结果为实现胶体和分子 LC 的N _TB和N _SB相开辟了道路。