Cholesteric liquid crystal
= Cholesteric liquid crystal
= Chiral nematic liquid crystal
{synonym}
A cholesteric liquid crystal is a chiral <nematic liquid crystal> whose local <nematic director> rotates helically in space. The pitch is the distance over which the director completes a full turn. It retains locally nematic orientational order without smectic density layering; the helical modulation should not be mistaken for a layer lattice.