Surface and flexoelectric polarization in a nematic liquid crystal 5CB

The temperature dependence of the surface polarization has been measured for both the planar and homeotropic orientation of a nematic liquid crystal at a solid substrate. A conventional liquid crystal 5CB, pure and doped with an azo-dye, was used in cells with controlled asymmetry for light absorption. The measurements have been made by a pyroelectric technique using short pulses of a YAG laser to create a temperature increment. The latter, in turn, was measured independently by a novel time-resolved “optical thermometer” technique monitoring temperature-dependent birefringence by a He- Ne laser beam. In accordance with the symmetry of the order parameter, the surface polarization has different sign for the two orientations, its magnitude ranges from -4 to +2pC/m. The same technique has been used for the measurement of the flexoelectric polarization in hybrid cells. The sum of the flexoelectric coefficients is e ₁ + e ₃ = - 13pC/m at 25°C. Received 28 February 2000 and Received in final form 5 September 2000     

宽范围可调谐内腔液晶垂直腔面发射激光器设计与研究

为增加可调谐激光器的波长调谐范围,提高系统的可靠性和稳定性,基于液晶的电控双折射特性,设计了一种中心波长为852 nm的内腔液晶可调谐垂直腔面发射激光器结构。分析了该结构获得宽范围波长调谐和单偏振稳定输出的物理原理,利用传输矩阵法进一步计算整个器件下不同液晶层厚度所对应的反射谱,得出不同液晶厚度和折射率下激光器的激射波长。结果表明,液晶可调谐激光器单偏振波长调谐范围达到31 nm,调谐效率大于10 nm/V。     

An azo-isomerization-induced Freedericksz transition of a nematic liquid crystal

We observed an azo-isomerization-induced Freedericksz transition of the 5CB liquid crystal doped with 1% double-azo. In experiment, we found that the Freedericksz transition threshold occurred at optical intensity level of 0.3 mW/mm² for the 12.5 μm-thickness planar alignment doped 5CB, which is four orders of magnitude lower as that for the pure 5CB. Using optical phase retardation, we measured the relations between the Freedericksz transition threshold and the pump beam polarization. The maximum twist angle of liquid crystal molecules under different pump beam intensity is given. The experiment indicated that trans–cis isomerization plays an important role in the decrease of the Freedericksz transition threshold.     

表面液晶-垂直腔面发射激光器温度特性的研究

本文利用向列相液晶层作为激光偏振调控单元,涂覆于垂直腔面发射激光器（VCSEL）表面,测量并分析了不同温度下VCSEL正交线偏振光的阈值电流、峰值光功率和I-P特性. 实验结果表明：温度为293 K时,涂覆液晶后激光偏振第一跳变点和第二跳变点之间的电流值ΔI增大了2.2 mA,比无液晶时增大1倍. 温度为313 K、注入电流为3 mA时,两种正交线偏振光的光功率差ΔP由133.6 μW增大到248.8 μW,进一步增加了线偏振光的各向异性. 表面液晶层的引入有效地扩大了VCSEL的正交线偏振态稳定范围和光功率差,为实现液晶VCSEL高温单偏振稳定的设计和器件制备提供了理论和实验基础. 关键词： 垂直腔面发射激光器 向列相液晶 偏振态     

Photoinduced decrease in local polarization switching fields in lithium niobate crystals

Variations in local polarization switching fields E _C in lithium niobate crystals have been investigated under laser irradiation of the z surface. It has been established that the simultaneous application of an electric field in the direction opposite to the spontaneous polarization field and laser beam leads to a decrease in the field E _C .     

Generation of a radially polarized laser beam by use of the birefringence of a c-cut Nd:YVO4 crystal

We demonstrated the generation of a radially polarized laser beam from an extremely simple laser resonator including a c-cut Nd:YVO4 crystal as a laser medium. The oscillation in the radial polarization was based on the optical path difference between an extraordinary ray and an ordinary ray induced by the birefringence of the crystal. By simply adjusting the distance between two cavity mirrors, only the extraordinary ray became stable for the oscillation, resulting in the generation of a radially polarized beam. The beam was very stable even at low power output and is expected to be a promising radially polarized laser source because of its excellent simplicity.     

Tricritical-like behavior of the nonlinear optical refraction at the nematic-isotropic transition in the E7 thermotropic liquid crystal

We use Z-scan technique to investigate the nonlinear optical response of the thermotropic liquid crystal E7 in the neighborhood of the nematic-isotropic phase transition. The analysis of the data for the nonlinear optical birefringence is compatible with an effective critical exponent of the order parameter, β = 0.28 ± 0.03, which is close to the classical value, β = 0.25 , for a tricritical point. The nonlinear optical absorption in the nematic range depends on the geometrical configuration of the nematic director with respect to the polarization beam, and vanishes in the isotropic phase.     

Laser beam manipulation by composite material electro-optic devices

Liquid crystals are anisotropic materials whose optical properties can be easily controlled applying an electric field. For this reason, they are widely used in electro-optical devices. Besides other applications, liquid crystals electro-optical devices are suitable for laser beam manipulation. In this paper, we present some devices developed or studied in our laboratory: a twisted nematic liquid crystal (TN-LC) polarization rotator, a TN-LC protected light sensor, a polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) light modulator, a PDLC optoelectronic polarizer and a polymer liquid crystal (PoLiCryst) light modulator.     

Mode splitting in an optical slab waveguide filled with nematic liquid crystals

Mode splitting was observed when a He-Ne laser beam was reflected through a prism-coupled liquid-crystal slab waveguide under an applied electric field. The splitting manifests itself as the imposed voltage reaches a critical level, and diminishes when the voltage increases above a critical high value. If the applied voltage increases even further, mode splitting vanishes, attributing to the result that almost all the directors of the liquid crystal turn upright to the surface. The multi-layer matrix simulation can satisfactorily account for this phenomenon by exploiting the property of the anisotropic optical birefringence of a liquid crystal under applied voltages. Received: 2 December 2002 / Revised version: 24 January 2003 / Published online: 23 May 2003 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +886/3572-3052, E-mail: jtlue@phys.nthu.edu.tw     

Quantum field theory of optical birefringence phenomena

The inverse Faraday effect, in which a magnetization is induced in a solution through which is passed a polarized light beam of arbitrary ellipticity, is discussed on the basis of the S-matrix formulation of optical birefringence. It is shown that the Faraday effect and the inverse Faraday effect are topologically identical problems of diagrammatic perturbation theory and so it follows automatically that the magnetization should be proportional to the Verdet constant. The optical Faraday effect is the circular birefringence induced by an intense circularly polarized beam of light propagated colinearly with the weak measuring beam: the electric vector of the circularly polarized beam interacts with the molecule in a way that resembles the interaction of a static magnetic field. The interrelations of these two effects and the normal Faraday effect the self-rotation of the polarization ellipse of an intense beam are discussed.     

向列相液晶中弱光引致各向异性衍射图样的研究

研究了弱线偏振光(≈0.16 W/cm²)通过垂直排列C₆₀掺杂的向列相液晶(5CB)薄膜的远场衍射图样.基于取向光折变机理,二波耦合使液晶分子进行二次取向之后,强度为高斯分布的光束通过样品时将形成高斯分布的空间电荷场,偏振光束通过样品时将产生偏振衍射图样.衍射图样的轮廓是同心圆环,在垂直于光的偏振方向有对称缺口.改变入射光的偏振方向可以看到衍射图样也随之改变, 有效非线性折射率系数n₂≈0.3cm²/W 关键词： 向列相液晶 取向光折变效应 自相位调制 衍射图样     

液晶磁控偏光特性的研究

利用偏光干涉理论,通过对BL-009型向列相液晶透射比的测试,分析了液晶透射比随磁场的变化情况,并对液晶的磁控双折射效应进行了研究.实验在室温20℃下用JG-3型连续可调磁场仪对液晶盒施加垂直于其表面的磁场,用CT5A型特斯拉计准确读出磁场强度数值,使液晶盒光轴方向与起偏镜和检偏镜偏振方向成45°,分别测出了起偏镜和检偏镜偏振方向平行和垂直时的透射光强度.通过数学函数拟合,得出了液晶的双折射率随磁场的变化规律,即：当磁场强度大于液晶的阈值磁场时,拟合函数能很好地描述液晶磁控双折射率的变化规律.     

表面液晶-垂直腔面发射激光器阵列的热特性

液晶与垂直腔面发射半导体激光器(VCSELs)阵列结合可实现波长可调谐、偏振精确控制等,同时液晶的引入也会改变垂直腔面发射半导体激光器阵列的热特性,本文设计了表面液晶-垂直腔面发射激光器阵列结构,并开展了阵列的热特性实验研究.对比分析了向列相液晶层对VCSEL阵列热特性的影响,实验结果表明,1×1,2×2,3×3三种表面液晶-VCSEL阵列的阈值电流温度变化率最高可降低23.6%,热阻降低26.75%;同时,激光器阵列各发光单元之间的温度均匀性显著提高,出光孔与周围温差小于0.5℃.综上所述,VCSEL阵列中液晶层的引入不仅大大加速激光器阵列单元热量扩散,而且降低了有源区结温,提高了VCSELs激光器阵列热特性,为实现高光束质量的单偏振波长可控VCSEL激光器阵列打下了良好的理论和实验基础.     

Electro-optic properties of switchable gratings made of polymer and nematic liquid-crystal slices

We report the diffraction properties at wavelengths of 632.8 and 1550 nm for volume transmission gratings made of a sequence of continuously aligned nematic liquid-crystal layers separated by isotropic polymer slices. The gratings are generated by holographically curing a solution of liquid crystal diluted in an isotropic prepolymer by means of a laser beam at a wavelength of 352 nm with a total intensity of approximately 10 mW/cm2. A diffraction efficiency of 98% was measured, and an electric field as low as 5 V/microm switches off the phase grating. Measured angular spectra are fitted by use of the modified coupled-mode theory including the effects of grating birefringence.     

Higher-order diffraction images in photorefractive materials

We report some photorefractive higher-order diffraction phenomena of a liquid crystal polymer composite. The photorefractive composite consists of the polymer poly[N-vinylcarbazole] (PVK) doped with the chromophore 4,4′-n-entylcyanobiphenyl (5CB) and the sensitizer C₆₀. In two-wave coupling experiments, the signal beam was interfered by a mutually coherent reference beam within composite materials at a small incident angle. Results are given when the composite was placed behind the focal plane, in front of the focal plane, and in the focal plane. Higher-order diffraction images were obtained by amplification and reduction. A theory of the properties of higher-order diffraction images in a photorefractive liquid crystal polymer composite is developed. The theory is in good agreement with the results of experimental work. The experiments demonstrate the feasibility of optical image processing.     

CS_2飞秒超快非线性特性的实验研究

采用中心波长800 nm、脉宽30 fs的超短激光脉冲,通过飞秒光开关技术对CS_2的飞秒超快非线性特性进行了实验研究.在探测光强与抽运光强比为1∶10时,得到了较理想的光克尔时间分辨曲线.通过实验测定的光克尔信号强度与激发光和探测光偏振方向夹角的依赖关系表明:30 fs的超短激光脉冲激发CS_2的克尔信号主要是源于光诱导双折射效应,而非用200 fs的超短激光脉冲时来自瞬态栅的自衍射效应.     

Nanotube Electron Drag in Flowing Liquids

We show that electric current can be generated in metallic carbon nanotubes immersed in liquids flowing along them. Molecular layers of the liquid coat the nanotube, slip along its surface, and excite there a phonon wind, which drags free carriers in the tube. The induced electric current should allow building of nanoscale detectors or power cells.     

非线性光栅的自适应光限幅

首次采用液晶为自聚焦媒质,夹在内表面刻有光栅的两玻璃片间,以Ar离子激光514.5nm波长的激光束垂直入射到光栅上,实验验证了该光栅的自适应光限幅特征。     

Sub-terahertz on-off switch based on a two-dimensional photonic crystal infiltrated by liquid crystals

A sub-terahertz switch is realized by infiltration of a two-dimensional photonic crystal (PC) with the liquid crystal 5CB. On-off switching is based on a shift of the bandgap of the PC by applying an external electric field which rotates the 5CB molecules. We confirm theoretically and experimentally that rotating the optical axis of the 5CB molecules considerably affects the transmission of the electromagnetic waves of TM polarization in the stop band. The effect can be used for on-off switching of the electromagnetic waves in the sub-terahertz range. Experimentally we demonstrate an extinction ratio of 13.3 dB at 91 GHz.     

Magnetic field dependence of the hexagonal to isotropic transition temperature of a single-walled carbon nanotubes dispersed lyotropic liquid crystal

We have carried out electrical conductivity studies on a single-walled carbon nanotubes dispersed lyotropic liquid crystal consisting of 50 wt.% TX-100 in water as a function of magnetic field and temperature. This system exhibits hexagonal and isotropic phases on heating. For all the applied magnetic fields, the temperature dependence of electrical conductivity of the carbon nanotubes dispersed lyotropic liquid crystal system exhibits a discontinuous change at the hexagonal to isotropic transition temperature. We find that the magnetic field dependence of the hexagonal to isotropic transition temperature is similar to that of the viscosity of the system. Using photo images of the sample, we find that the carbon nanotubes in the lyotropic liquid crystal form magnetic field dependent aggregates. We find spherical, rod and hook-like nanotube aggregates for low and high applied magnetic fields respectively. These nanotube aggregates alter the viscosity of our system which in turn alters the transition temperatures.