Study on colour characteristics depending on orientation of liquid crystal in the in‐plane switching mode

The degree of colour shift depending on viewing direction in the in‐plane switching (IPS) mode has been investigated. The IPS cell with pure twist deformation exhibits a stronger colour shift than that of the IPS cell with tilt as well as twist deformation, although the former has better luminance uniformity in the bright state than the latter. Furthermore, the IPS cell with multi‐directional LC orientation, with tilt as well as twist deformation, shows the least colour shift.     

Crucial influence of polar alignment on the dynamics of in-plane switching cells

We investigated theoretically the dynamics of in-plane switching (IPS) cells with small pretilt angle and found that the liquid crystal director variation causes optical bounce after switching on an applied voltage. We analysed the behaviour of the director by computer simulation and found that the optical bounce occurs during the rising period with the normal twist and tilt angles of the directors in the IPS cell in the absence of the field-induced backflow effect. Pretilt angle is the source of this optical bounce.     

Crucial influence of polar alignment on the dynamics of in-plane switching cells

We investigated theoretically the dynamics of in-plane switching (IPS) cells with small pretilt angle and found that the liquid crystal director variation causes optical bounce after switching on an applied voltage. We analysed the behaviour of the director by computer simulation and found that the optical bounce occurs during the rising period with the normal twist and tilt angles of the directors in the IPS cell in the absence of the field-induced backflow effect. Pretilt angle is the source of this optical bounce.     

Viewing angle characteristics of a homogeneously aligned two-domain liquid crystal cell with an inter-digitated electrode

The in-plane switching (IPS) mode in liquid crystal displays is known to exhibit a wide viewing angle. However, since the LC director rotates in one direction in the plane, devices with a single domain exhibit both a colour shift depending on the viewing angle, and greyscale inversion at specific angles especially at low grey levels. This has been improved by wedge shaped electrodes so that fields in two directions exist inside a pixel, causing the LC molecules to rotate in opposite directions to compensate each other; this acts as a virtual two domains structure. Nevertheless, the colour shift still exists to some extent, especially at low grey levels. In this paper, we propose a realistic two-domain IPS mode that exhibits a minimized colour shift at all grey levels on changing the viewing direction. In this device, the LC molecules are initially aligned in two directions orthogonal to each other, and two field directions exist perpendicular to each other. We have performed device simulations with respect to viewing angle characteristics, and found that IPS devices with a real two-domain structure reduce the variation of the retardation more effectively, when the viewing direction changes.     

Helical Mechanoclinic Deformation of Main‐Chain Chiral Smectic Elastomers

The helical mechanoclinic deformation of a main‐chain chiral smectic elastomer, which is prepared by a crosslinking reaction under twist deformation, is investigated. The twist deformation induces a layer tilt angle that depends on the handedness of twist. The layer tilt angle in the right‐handedly twisted elastomer, of which the handedness is consistent with that of the helix in the SmC* phase of the non‐crosslinked backbone polymer, is estimated to be up to 16° at room temperature, although that in the left‐handedly twisted elastomer is less than several degrees. The experiments provide evidence of chiral coupling between tilt and twist for helical mechanoclinic deformation in the chiral smectic system.

     

Experimental investigation of the compressible continuum theory of a homeotropically aligned ferroelectric liquid crystal

The optical tensor configuration in a homeotropically aligned ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC), SCE13 cell, is investigated by means of optical excitation of half leaky guided modes. A thin slab of FLC is confined between a high index pyramid and a low index substrate whose indices bound those of the liquid crystal. In this geometry there exists a small angle range over which a series of sharp resonant modes may propagate in the liquid crystal. Detecting the angular dependent reflectivity for plane polarized radiation and subsequently fitting the data by iteratively modelling from multilayer Fresnel theory, a full characterization of the tilt and twist profile throughout the cell is achieved. The temperature dependence of the tilt of the principal director, which is related to the smectic cone angle, and of the optical permittivity, as well as the pitch have been obtained. The tilt director profile across the cell is interpreted using a compressible continuum theory for SmC* liquid crystals which includes the possibility of variable cone angle and layer spacing.     

Optical guided-wave study of a homeotropically aligned ferroelectric liquid crystal

Abstract

The excitation of optical modes is used to study the optical tensor configuration in a thin ferroelectric liquid crystal layer, cooled from the initially homeotropically aligned nematic phase. By monitoring the angular dependent reflectivity for plane polarized radiation coupled into the guided modes in the smectic C* layer and subsequently fitting the recorded data to predictions from multilayer optics theory, the optical tensor configuration in the layer is fully evaluated. Iteratively modelling the full tilt/twist profile in the cell, progressively converging the predicted reflectivity to experimental data, gives a complete and very well specified picture of the optical tensor throughout the cell. By studying the cell at various temperatures, the temperature dependence of the tilt of the major axis of the optic tensor (which may be related to the cone angle if the smectic layers are parallel to the cell surface) has been established. The temperature dependent optical dielectric constants have also been obtained.     

Optical guided-wave study of a homeotropically aligned ferroelectric liquid crystal

The excitation of optical modes is used to study the optical tensor configuration in a thin ferroelectric liquid crystal layer, cooled from the initially homeotropically aligned nematic phase. By monitoring the angular dependent reflectivity for plane polarized radiation coupled into the guided modes in the smectic C* layer and subsequently fitting the recorded data to predictions from multilayer optics theory, the optical tensor configuration in the layer is fully evaluated. Iteratively modelling the full tilt/twist profile in the cell, progressively converging the predicted reflectivity to experimental data, gives a complete and very well specified picture of the optical tensor throughout the cell. By studying the cell at various temperatures, the temperature dependence of the tilt of the major axis of the optic tensor (which may be related to the cone angle if the smectic layers are parallel to the cell surface) has been established. The temperature dependent optical dielectric constants have also been obtained.     

Fast switching and luminance-controlled fringe-field switching liquid crystal device for vehicle display

ABSTRACT

Liquid crystal displays (LCDs) for vehicle displays should exhibit a fast response time in wide temperature range and wide-viewing angle in horizontal and downward directions without grey-scale inversion but limited brightness in the upward direction because the display images can be reproduced in the front window glass of a vehicle, affecting driver’s front visibility. Currently, fringe-field switching (FFS) liquid crystal device is widely commercialised for high resolution and wide-viewing-angle LCD; however, it needs to improve response times and limit the display brightness in the upward direction. As a solution, we propose a homogeneously aligned liquid crystal device in which liquid crystal director does tilt as well as twist deformation in a confined area by both vertical- and fringe-electric fields, exhibiting about two times faster decay response time than that of conventional FFS mode with suppressed luminance in the upward direction. The proposed liquid crystal device can be applied to LCDs for vehicle displays.     

Response of a twisted nematic liquid crystal to any applied potential

The response of a twisted nematic liquid crystal trapped between flat and parallel aligning layers is analysed. Using a recently developed form for the relevant integrals it has been possible to evaluate the twist and tilt of the director for any applied voltage for twists up to a maximum of 90°. It is shown that the equations describing the cell simplify in the high voltage limit and allow an analytic solution. This leads to considerable improvement in the computational procedures and also enables the twist profile to be expressed in a particularly simple algebraic form.     

Influence of cell and LC parameters on the dynamics of STN liquid crystal displays

The dynamics of super-twisted nematic (STN) liquid crystal displays have rarely been studied. In this article, the dynamic response of STN is analysed in detail. The evolution of director configuration with time was obtained by solving Ericksen-Leslie hydrodynamic equations. The time varying midlayer tilt angle is presented as a measure of dynamic response. The influence on STN dynamics of cell parameters including pretilt angle, twist angle, cell thickness, and of material parameters including d/p, K₂₂, K₃₃, were studied.     

Dispersions of image potential states on surfaces of clean graphite and lead phthalocyanine film

Dispersions of image potential states on a graphite surface (denoted IPS1) and on 1 monolayer (ML) film (denoted IPS2) of lead phthalocyanine (PbPc) are investigated by the micro-spot angle-resolved two-photon photoemission (micro-AR-2PPE) spectroscopy. On the graphite surface, whole dispersions of the two members of IPS1 (n = 1 and 2) are observed. The n = 1 IPS1 peak is weakly visible at energy higher than the vacuum level. The effective mass of an electron in the n = 1 IPS1 becomes slightly light at the high momentum region, suggesting the interaction between the IPS1 and the unoccupied σ-band of graphite. On the PbPc film, the IPS2 band forms a band gap and back-folds at the boundary of the Brillouin zone. A 1-dimensional Kronig-Penny model is used to reproduce the effective mass and the shift of binding energy.     

The in-plane switching of homogeneously aligned nematic liquid crystals

We have investigated the electro-optical effects and physical switching principle of homogeneously aligned nematic liquid crystals when applying an in-plane electric field with interdigital electrodes. By using the in-plane switching (IPS) of the liquid crystals which is achieved by the in-plane electric field, the viewing angle characteristics of the electro-optical effects were confirmed to be far superior to those of the conventional twisted nematic mode in which the electric field is applied along the direction perpendicular to the substrates. The non-reversal region of grey scales was extremely wide in which a high contrast ratio was kept, even along quite an oblique direction in the IPS mode. In order to clarify the switching principle of the liquid crystals in the IPS mode, a simplified expression describing the threshold behaviour of the device was derived with the assumption that a uniform in-plane electric field was applied along a direction perpendicular to the director and parallel to the homogeneously aligned nematic slab, and found to be sufficiently able to explain the experimental results. First, a critical field at which the liquid crystals just began to twist, was found to be proportional to the reciprocal of the cell gap. Second, it was the electric field and not the voltage that drives the liquid crystals. This relationship was due to the independence of the electric field regarding the liquid crystal layer normal direction. So the threshold voltage in the IPS mode was strongly dependent on the variation of the cell gap. For the dynamical response mechanism of the liquid crystals to the in-plane electric field, the switching on and off processes of the liquid crystals were analysed quantitatively. The relaxation time of the liquid crystals when removing the electric field could be described as proportional to the square of the cell gap. A thinner cell gap also proved to be effective in obtaining a fast response time in the IPS mode. In contrast, the switching on time when applying the in-plane electric field was found to be inversely proportional to the difference between the square of the electric field strength and the square of the critical electric field strength at which the liquid crystals began to deform.     

Periodic deformations induced by a magnetic field in planar twisted nematic layers

Magnetic field-induced spatially periodic deformations of planar nematic layers twisted by an angle Φ were investigated numerically. Chiral nematics with pitches compatible with the twist angle and non-chiral nematics twisted by Φ ? π/2 were considered. Two different modes of deformation, taking the form of stripes, were found: the so called Mode X, with periodicity parallel to the mid-plane director in the undisturbed structure, and Mode Y with periodicity perpendicular to the mid-plane director. The static director distributions were calculated for various magnetic field strengths, twist angles and elastic parameters. The influence of surface tilt was also investigated. Mode X appeared for sufficiently large Φ and was possible in nematics with typical elastic properties. Mode Y appeared provided that the k ₂₂/k ₁₁ elastic constant ratio and the twist angle Φ were sufficiently small. Both modes arose from the undistorted state when the magnetic field exceeded a threshold value. The spatial period of the patterns increased with field strength. At high field, regions with almost homogeneous deformation arose in the two halves of each stripe. Their width and, simultaneously, the spatial period diverged to infinity at some critical field. This divergence corresponds to the transition to a homogeneously deformed state. Diagrams were constructed showing the ranges of parameters favouring the periodic distortions.     

Periodic deformations induced by a magnetic field in planar twisted nematic layers

Magnetic field-induced spatially periodic deformations of planar nematic layers twisted by an angle Φ were investigated numerically. Chiral nematics with pitches compatible with the twist angle and non-chiral nematics twisted by Φ ≤π/2 were considered. Two different modes of deformation, taking the form of stripes, were found: the so called Mode X, with periodicity parallel to the mid-plane director in the undisturbed structure, and Mode Y with periodicity perpendicular to the mid-plane director. The static director distributions were calculated for various magnetic field strengths, twist angles and elastic parameters. The influence of surface tilt was also investigated. Mode X appeared for sufficiently large Φ and was possible in nematics with typical elastic properties. Mode Y appeared provided that the k₂₂/k₁₁ elastic constant ratio and the twist angle Φ were sufficiently small. Both modes arose from the undistorted state when the magnetic field exceeded a threshold value. The spatial period of the patterns increased with field strength. At high field, regions with almost homogeneous deformation arose in the two halves of each stripe. Their width and, simultaneously, the spatial period diverged to infinity at some critical field. This divergence corresponds to the transition to a homogeneously deformed state. Diagrams were constructed showing the ranges of parameters favouring the periodic distortions.     

Influence of cell and LC parameters on the dynamics of STN liquid crystal displays

The dynamics of super-twisted nematic (STN) liquid crystal displays have rarely been studied. In this article, the dynamic response of STN is analysed in detail. The evolution of director configuration with time was obtained by solving Ericksen–Leslie hydrodynamic equations. The time varying midlayer tilt angle is presented as a measure of dynamic response. The influence on STN dynamics of cell parameters including pretilt angle, twist angle, cell thickness, and of material parameters including d/p, K ₂₂, K ₃₃, were studied.     

Direct measurement of the twist penetration length in a single smectic A layer of colloidal virus particles

In the 1970s, deGennes discussed the fundamental geometry of smectic liquid crystals and established an analogy between the smectic A phase and superconductors. It follows that smectic layers expel twist deformations in the same way that superconductors expel magnetic field. We make a direct observation of the penetration of twist at the edge of a single isolated smectic A layer composed of chiral fd virus particles subjected to a depletion interaction. Using the LC-PolScope, we make quantitative measurements of the spatial dependence of the birefringence due to molecular tilt near the layer edges. We match data to theory for the molecular tilt penetration profile and determine the twist penetration length for this system.     

Enhanced sampling simulations of DNA step parameters

A novel approach for the selection of step parameters as reaction coordinates in enhanced sampling simulations of DNA is presented. The method uses three atoms per base and does not require coordinate overlays or idealized base pairs. This allowed for a highly efficient implementation of the calculation of all step parameters and their Cartesian derivatives in molecular dynamics simulations. Good correlation between the calculated and actual twist, roll, tilt, shift, and slide parameters is obtained, while the correlation with rise is modest. The method is illustrated by its application to the methylated and unmethylated 5′‐CATGTGACGTCACATG‐3′ double stranded DNA sequence. One‐dimensional umbrella simulations indicate that the flexibility of the central CG step is only marginally affected by methylation. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Bend-stripes in hybrid aligned nematic layers

Abstract

The occurrence of bend-stripes also involving twist distortion is investigated in hybrid aligned nematic layers, with stronger tilt-anchoring at the homeotropic substrate than at the planar one. The modulated structure is found to exist above the thickness threshold d _a for the aperiodic bend-splay deformation. The periodicities of the director azimuth and polar angle are incommensurate along the normal to the cell plates. In principle, two independent periodic modes are possible, the first one stable, with threshold d _p = d _a, the second one metastable, with threshold d _p > d _a, according to the values of the torsional extrapolation lengths. Both transitions are continuous with respect to the in-plane wavenumber. The second mode can appear only if the difference between the torsional and the tilt extrapolation lengths is positive at the planar substrate. Moreover, both thresholds are independent of the saddle-splay elastic constant.     

IPS mode investigation of liquid crystal alignment on organic hybrid overcoat layer via ion beam irradiation

The nematic liquid crystal alignment capability and electro‐optical (EO) performance characteristics of in‐plane switching (IPS) cells were first demonstrated on organic hybrid overcoat layers via ion beam irradiation. Usually the organic hybrid overcoat is used as the material for making a plate alignment layer in a colour filter process. To characterise the organic hybrid overcoat layer, we analysed the surface composition of the organic hybrid overcoat by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results show that the intensity of C = O and C–O bonding undergoes a change corresponding to the changes in energy of the ion beam exposure. Moreover, EO performance characteristics of IPS cells on the organic hybrid overcoat layer via ion beam irradiation were observed to have similar characteristics to the polyimide.