Closer look at transmissive polarization volume holograms: geometry, physics, and experimental validation.

In this work, we took a closer look at transmissive polarization volume holograms (T-PVH) to provide clarifications on their geometry, physics, and optical responses by finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation and experimental validation. First, we introduced the four possible geometries of T-PVH and simulated their optical responses in terms of diffraction efficiency, polarization selectivity, and polarization output. It is shown that the configuration we called "Slanted T-PVH (B-θ/D-θ+90)," where the director is perpendicular to the Bragg planes, has the advantageous property of maintaining circular output polarization states. For this configuration, a detailed simulation of spectral, angular, and polarization responses was completed. Finally, we validated the FDTD simulation results of the Slanted T-PVH (B-θ/D-θ+90) structures with experiments.

Large-aperture transparent beam steering screen based on LCMPA.

A large aperture transmissive step-steering screen composed of a liquid crystal microprism array (LCMPA) deflector and a 90° twisted nematic liquid crystal (TN LC) polarization modulator is developed. The designed 3 in. (7.62 cm) device provides a steering angle of 0.95° that differs from the projected value by only 1.26% and the angular difference caused by dispersion is less than 5%. Using two-layer cascaded screens a three-direction beam steering system for stereoscopic displays is achieved with a steering step of 0.95°, undesired residual polarization contrast less than 2%, and high optical uniformity.

High-Resolution and High-Throughput Plasmonic Photopatterning of Complex Molecular Orientations in Liquid Crystals.

A plasmonic photopatterning technique is proposed and demonstrated for aligning the molecular orientation in liquid crystals (LCs) in patterns with designer complexity. Using plasmonic metamasks in which target molecular directors are encoded, LC alignments of arbitrary planar patterns can be achieved in a repeatable and scalable fashion withunprecedentedly high spatial resolution and high throughput.

Two-step electrical percolation in nematic liquid crystals filled with multiwalled carbon nanotubes.

Percolation of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in liquid crystals (LCs) opens the way for a unique class of anisotropic hybrid materials with a complex dielectric constant widely controlled by CNT concentration. Percolation in such systems is commonly described as a one-step process starting at a very low loading of CNTs. In the present study the two-step percolation was observed in the samples of thickness 250 µm obtained by pressing the suspension between two substrates. The first threshold concentration, C(n)(p(1))∼10(-4) wt.%, was sensitive to temperature and phase state of LC, while the second one, C(n)(p(2))∼10(-1) wt.%, remained practically unchanged in the temperature tests. The two-stage nature of percolation was explained on a base of mean-field theory assuming core-shell structure of CNTs.

Cholesteric liquid crystal-carbon nanotube composites with photo-settable reversible and memory electro-optic modes.

The photoresponsive electro-optical composites based on cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) with optically controlled chirality and a minute amount of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are studied. In cells with homeotropic anchoring, these composites exhibit a transition from fingerprint texture to homeotropic nematic texture in the course of photoinduced unwinding of the cholesteric helix. Compared with the CLC counterpart, this transition is much delayed, because of the stabilization of cholesteric filamentary domains by CNTs. The CLC-CNT composites demonstrate dual-mode operation with optical switching between reversible and memory mode. It is found that the memory response is associated with the elastic network of filamentary cholesteric domains that stabilizes the planar CLC texture reached in an electric field. In turn, the reversible mode corresponds to the unwound cholesteric state. Potential applications of this effect are discussed.

Photoinduced helical inversion in cholesteric liquid crystal cells with homeotropic anchoring.

Structural changes caused by the optically induced helical inversion in the cholesteric liquid crystal cells with homeotropic anchoring are studied. In a one-step exposure, a sequence of structural transformations "lying left-handed helix - unwound homeotropic state - lying right-handed helix" is realized. In this process, smooth expansion of a left-handed helix, transition to an unwound state, emergence and smooth compression of a right-handed helix was observed. The unwound state was maintained over a rather wide range of exposures. Well-oriented and highly periodic fingerprint textures capable of the above mentioned structural changes were obtained by rubbing the aligning substrates. This allowed for obtaining photo-tunable diffraction gratings and using them to demonstrate new beam steering principle. Also, pitch reversal suggested new options for optical recording, in particular contrast reversal and edge enhancement.

Liquid-crystal anchoring transitions on aligning substrates processed by a plasma beam.

We have studied a sequence of anchoring transitions observed in nematic liquid crystals (NLCs) sandwiched between hydrophobic polyimide substrates treated with a plasma beam. There is a pronounced continuous transition from a homeotropic to a slightly tilted (nearly planar) alignment with the easy axis parallel to the incidence plane of the plasma beam (the zenithal transition) which takes place as the exposure dose increases. In NLCs with positive dielectric anisotropy, a further increase in the exposure dose results in in-plane reorientation of the easy axis by 90 degrees (the azimuthal transition). This transition occurs through the twofold degenerate alignment characteristic of second-order anchoring transitions. In contrast to the critical behavior of anchoring, the contact angle of the NLC and water on the treated substrates declines monotonically with increasing exposure dose. It follows that the surface concentration of hydrophobic chains decreases continuously. The anchoring transitions under consideration are qualitatively interpreted by using a simple phenomenological model of competing easy axes which is studied by analyzing anchoring diagrams of generalized polar and nonpolar anchoring models.

Electro-optics and structural peculiarities of liquid crystal-nanoparticle-polymer composites.

The structural peculiarities and electro-optic performance of liquid crystal (LC)-colloidal nanoparticle (NP)-polymer (P) composites formed by photoinduced phase separation are considered. We classify these materials under two groups according to two limiting cases of polymer morphology. The first group corresponding to small polymer concentration comprises LCs filled with NPs that are stabilized with a polymer network. It is found that, in addition to the light scattering caused by the LC orientational defects, the refractive index mismatch between LC and NP aggregates may significantly affect the electro-optic contrast and its angular characteristics. The second group is represented by polymer dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs) filled with NPs. It is established that, in the process of photoinduced phase separation of the LC-NP-prepolymer mixture, the nanoparticles are mainly involved with the polymer, serving as building blocks for the polymer matrix. When the aggregation rate of the NPs is high or their size is large, the NPs enhance light scattering in the polymer. For low aggregation rate, NPs modify the effective refractive index and/or the absorption coefficient of the polymer phase without producing any noticeable optical inhomogeneity. Additionally, we found that TiO2 NPs may cause a photochromic effect, which manifests itself in color changes in the course of the photoinduced phase separation. For PDLCs with optically transparent polymer matrices modified by NPs, it is shown that doping with NPs can be used to control the refractive index ratio of the LC and polymer. In this way one can modify the contrast and substantially reduce the off-axis haze of the PDLC. The observed effects show LC-NP-P composites as materials of considerable promise for LCD and other electro-optic applications.

Quasi-two-dimensional diffusive random laser action.

We report on random lasing in a disordered system in which the multiple scattering feedback mechanism can be switched from a three-dimensional random walk to a quasi-two-dimensional type of transport. The emission from this system is anisotropic, extraordinary polarized, and is controlled via an external electric field. The phenomenon is observed in dye-doped polymer dispersed liquid crystals and makes use of the strong scattering anisotropies in these materials.