Fractal aggregates evolution of methyl red in liquid crystal.

The spontaneous formation of dendritic aggregates is observed in a two-dimensional confined layered system consisting of a film composed of liquid crystal, dye and solvent cast above a polymer substrate. The observed aggregates are promoted by phase separation processes induced by dye diffusion and solvent evaporation. The growth properties of the aggregates are studied through the temporal evolution of their topological properties (surface, perimeter, fractal dimension). The fractal dimension of the completely formed structures, when they are coexistent with different types of structures, is consistent with theoretical and experimental values obtained for Diffusion-Limited Aggregates. Under different experimental conditions (temperature and local dye concentration) the structure forms without interactions with other kinds of structures, and its equilibrium fractal dimension is smaller. The fractal dimension is thus not a universal property of the observed structures, but rather depends on the experimental conditions.

Ion Motion in Electrolytic Cells: Anomalous Diffusion Evidences.

In this study, we argue that ion motion in electrolytic cells containing Milli-Q water, weak electrolytes, or liquid crystals may exhibit unusual diffusive regimes that deviate from the expected behavior, leading the system to present an anomalous diffusion. Our arguments lie on the investigation of the electrical conductivity and its relationship with the mean square displacement, which may be used to characterize the ionic motion. In our analysis, the Poisson-Nernst-Planck diffusional model is used with extended boundary conditions to simulate the charge transfer, accumulation, and/or adsorption-desorption at the electrode surfaces.

Light-induced rotations of chiral birefringent microparticles in optical tweezers.

We study the rotational dynamics of solid chiral and birefringent microparticles induced by elliptically polarized laser light in optical tweezers. We find that both reflection of left circularly polarized light and residual linear retardance affect the particle dynamics. The degree of ellipticity of laser light needed to induce rotations is found. The experimental results are compared with analytical calculations of the transfer of angular moment from elliptically polarized light to chiral birefringent particles.

Light manipulation of nanoparticles in arrays of topological defects.

We report a strategy to assemble and manipulate nanoparticles arrays. The approach is based on the use of topological defects, namely disclination lines, created in chiral liquid crystals. The control of nanoparticle-loaded topological defects by low power light is demonstrated. Large-scale rotation, translation and deformation of quantum dots light-emitting chains is achieved by homogeneous LED illumination. Full reconfigurability and time stability make this approach attractive for future developments and applications.

Light-induced molecular adsorption and reorientation at polyvinylcinnamate-fluorinated/liquid-crystal interface.

We have carried out a detailed experimental study, by means of x-ray reflectometry (XRR) and half-leaky guided mode (HLGM) optical characterization, of the light-induced molecular adsorption and reorientation at the polyvinylcinnamate-fluorinated (PVCN-F)/liquid-crystal (LC) interface of a LC cell doped with the azo-dye methyl red (MR). The XRR data allowed characterizing the microscopic structure of the adsorbed dye layer both before irradiation (dark adsorption) and after irradiation (light-induced adsorption). The HLGM optical characterization has made possible the experimental determination of the nematic director profile in the LC cell and evaluation of the effects of light-induced adsorption on the LC anchoring conditions. The experimental findings have confirmed the formation of a dark-adsorbed layer and are in agreement with the absorption model previously proposed to account for the complex phenomenology related to light-induced anchoring and reorientation in dye-doped liquid crystals.

Chiral resolution of spin angular momentum in linearly polarized and unpolarized light.

Linearly polarized (LP) and unpolarized (UP) light are racemic entities since they can be described as superposition of opposite circularly polarized (CP) components of equal amplitude. As a consequence they do not carry spin angular momentum. Chiral resolution of a racemate, i.e. separation of their chiral components, is usually performed via asymmetric interaction with a chiral entity. In this paper we provide an experimental evidence of the chiral resolution of linearly polarized and unpolarized Gaussian beams through the transfer of spin angular momentum to chiral microparticles. Due to the interplay between linear and angular momentum exchange, basic manipulation tasks, as trapping, spinning or orbiting of micro-objects, can be performed by light with zero helicity. The results might broaden the perspectives for development of miniaturized and cost-effective devices.

Optical determination of flexoelectric coefficients and surface polarization in a hybrid aligned nematic cell.

We present an optical study of the influence of both the flexoelectric effect and surface polarization on a hybrid-aligned nematic cell using the half-leaky guided mode technique. Tilt angle profiles, obtained from fits of experimental data (reflectivity curves) taken under applied voltages, are compared with the ones derived by a complete theoretical model. Measurements with an applied alternating voltage allow the evaluation of the anchoring energy by solving the torque balance equation at the planar surface. From measurements with static fields, the sum of flexoelectric coefficients and the surface polarization are determined by numerical solution of Euler-Lagrange equations.

Polarization-dependent optomechanics mediated by chiral microresonators.

Chirality is one of the most prominent and intriguing aspects of nature, from spiral galaxies down to aminoacids. Despite the wide range of living and non-living, natural and artificial chiral systems at different scales, the origin of chirality-induced phenomena is often puzzling. Here we assess the onset of chiral optomechanics, exploiting the control of the interaction between chiral entities. We perform an experimental and theoretical investigation of the simultaneous optical trapping and rotation of spherulite-like chiral microparticles. Due to their shell structure (Bragg dielectric resonator), the microparticles function as omnidirectional chiral mirrors yielding highly polarization-dependent optomechanical effects. The coupling of linear and angular momentum, mediated by the optical polarization and the microparticles chiral reflectance, allows for fine tuning of chirality-induced optical forces and torques. This offers tools for optomechanics, optical sorting and sensing and optofluidics.

Non-Debye relaxation in the dielectric response of nematic liquid crystals: surface and memory effects in the adsorption-desorption process of ionic impurities.

We demonstrate theoretically that the presence of ions in insulating materials such as nematic liquid crystals may be responsible for the dielectric spectroscopy behavior observed experimentally. It is shown that, at low frequencies, an essentially non-Debye relaxation process takes place due to surface effects. This is accomplished by investigating the effects of the adsorption-desorption process on the electrical response of an electrolytic cell when the generation and recombination of ions is present. The adsorption-desorption is governed by a non-usual kinetic equation in order to incorporate memory effects related to a non-Debye relaxation and the roughness of the surface. The analysis is carried out by searching for solutions to the drift-diffusion equation that satisfy the Poisson equation relating the effective electric field to the net charge density. We also discuss the effect of the mobility of the ions, i.e., situations with equal and different diffusion coefficients for positive and negative ions, on the impedance and obtain an exact expression for the admittance. The model is compared with experimental results measured for the impedance of a nematic liquid crystal sample and a very good agreement is obtained.

Orientational gratings in dye-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystals induced by the photorefractive effect.

We report the observation of orientational gratings induced by the photorefractive effect in dye-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystals. The photorefractive origin of the grating-induction effect is supported by the results of two-beam coupling experiments and by the possibility of erasing the grating by uniform illumination. For all the samples a stable memory effect was observed.