Elucidating the fine details of cholesteric liquid crystal shell reflection patterns

ABSTRACT

Clusters of planar-aligned short-pitch cholesteric liquid crystal spheres generate dynamic colourful patterns due to multiple selective reflections from the radially oriented cholesteric helices in neighbour shells at varying distances. These photonic communication patterns were widely investigated for the cases of both droplets and shells, demonstrating not only intriguing optical phenomena but also potential for applications as new optical elements for photonics, sensing or security pattern generation. However, the optics of these clusters is truly complex and until now only the strongest and most fundamental reflections have been analysed and explained. In this report, we elucidate the origin of a number of more subtle reflections and we explain the extension in space of various spots as well as their internal colour variations.     

Laser emission at the second-order photonic band gap in an electric-field-distorted cholesteric liquid crystal

ABSTRACT

We study the optical properties of a cholesteric liquid crystal doped with a fluorescent dye in the regime of highly distorted helix without full helix unwinding. The distortion was achieved by applying a pulsed AC electric field, perpendicular to the helix axis. If the pulse is in the millisecond range, the helix is deformed but keeps its original pitch even for electric fields higher than the theoretical critical field for helix unwinding. In this field regime, very pronounced high-order photonic band gaps are observed, in agreement with our calculations. We theoretically explore the possibility of obtaining viable laser emission at the second-order photonic band gap, and experimentally find that lasing is not only possible but has a figure of merit similar to that of the usual laser at the main-gap region. Therefore, electric-field-induced high-order photonic band gaps are potentially useful for multiline laser applications.     

Low-birefringence liquid crystal mixtures for photonic liquid crystal fibres application

ABSTRACT

Series of low-birefringence liquid crystal mixtures composed of alkyl alkylbicyclohexyl carbonates and modified mixtures with other compounds have been formulated, their refractive indices and electric permittivity measured upon temperature. They exhibit the ordinary refraction index n_o lower than the refractive index of silica glass in a different range of temperature. This enables to observe in photonic liquid crystal fibres (PLCFs) a change in the light propagation mechanism from photonic band gap guiding to modified total internal reflection at different temperatures. Selected applications of PLCFs are also discussed.     

Effects of polymer network on electrically induced reflection band broadening of cholesteric liquid crystals

The reflection band of polymer stabilized cholesteric liquid crystals with negative dielectric anisotropy can be broadened by DC electric fields, which was ascribed to the pitch gradient caused by the motion of the structural chirality, that is, the polymer network. They systematically varied the mixture components, such as the photo‐initiator concentration, the monomer functionality, and the chiral dopant, to explore their influences on the reflection band broadening behavior. They learned how to control the polymer network morphology and ion density, which in turn determined the reflection bandwidth. By optimizing the mixture, they have greatly enhanced the broadening effect and achieved large bandwidth at low voltages. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2017 , 55, 835–846     

Localised optical states in a structure formed by two oppositely handed cholesteric liquid crystal layers and a metal

A new model for observing localised optical states in a structure containing a cholesteric liquid crystal is proposed. The dependence of the mode frequency on the angle between directors at the interface of oppositely handed cholesterics is established. The effect of the metal layer thickness on localisation of light at the localised state frequency is studied. Polarisation features of the transmission spectrum are investigated. The possibility of experimental implementation of the proposed structure is discussed.     

Enhancement of the optical absorption in cholesteric liquid crystals due to photonic effects: an experimental study

An anomalous strong optical absorption was measured in a cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) at both edges of its photonic band gap. The experiment was carried out by studying the luminescence generated by the CLC sample doped with a small amount of fluorescent dye. The material was excited with monochromatic light at different angles of incidence and polarisations. Clear peaks were found in the luminescence response at angles for which the pumping wavelength coincides with the positions of the gap edges. The effect is especially noticeable for excitation under circularly polarised light of the same handedness as that of the CLC helix, and it is the highest at the long-wavelength edge. The modification of the absorption is originated by the helicoidal (photonic) structure of the material, which drastically influences the propagation of electromagnetic waves at certain frequencies and polarisations. The results were analysed numerically using an extension of the Berreman method that incorporates absorption effects. Good agreement with the experiment was found.     

Circular dichroism and absorption in a finite cholesteric liquid crystal layer with an isotropic defect layer inside

Circular dichroism and absorption are calculated for one-dimensional chiral soft substance (a cholesteric liquid crystal, CLC) cells with an isotropic defect layer. The photonic density of states (PDS), circular dichroism, absorption and emission dependencies are calculated as functions of the parameters characterising absorption and gain. The absorption and gain effects in chiral photonic systems with a defect layer are established and it is shown that in some cases the subject system can work as: a low threshold laser, a multi-position trigger, a total wide/narrow band absorber, a wide/narrow band filter/mirror, etc. This work demonstrates the effects of absorption and emission in photonic crystal (PC) layers, and offers a novel approach to understanding of tunable soft photonic substances.     

Synthesis and characterization of two series of pressure-sensitive cholesteric liquid crystal elastomers with optical properties

ABSTRACT

We synthesized two series of cholesteric liquid-crystal elastomers by hydrosilylation among monomers MA containing a cholesteryl group, MB (MC) containing a phenolic hydroxyl group and MD as the crosslinker. The chemical structures of all the monomers and LCEs were confirmed by ¹H NMR and FT-IR. We explored the mesomorphic properties and phase behaviours by TGA, DSC, POM, and XRD. All the LCEs presented elasticity, reversible phase transition, and high thermal stability. For two series of LCEs, the glass transition temperature increased slowly, and the isotropic transition temperature increased obviously. PA-I-PA-V and PB-I-PB-IV displayed selective reflection and colourful Grandjean texture, but PA-VI, PB-V, and PB-VI needed external pressure to show them.     

Director distribution in field-induced undulated structures of cholesteric liquid crystals

Structures with a periodic in-plane liquid crystal director field modulation induced by an electric field are studied in cholesteric liquid crystals (CLCs). A phenomenon of the electric-field-induced instability in a planarly aligned cholesteric cell is used to create these undulated structures. The initial field-off state is planarly aligned with the cholesteric helix axis oriented perpendicular to the cell substrates. The interaction of the CLC with an electric field results in modulation of the refractive index, which is visualised as stripe domains oriented either along or perpendicular to the rubbing direction at cell alignment surfaces. The threshold electric field for the undulation appearance and a period of stripes are measured experimentally for three Grandjean zones (ratio d/p ~ 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5, where d is a cell thickness and p is the natural cholesteric pitch). For the zone with d/p ~ 1.0 using numerical simulations, we describe in detail the director distribution at an applied electric field. It is found that the in-plane undulated structure is characterised by a conical director rotation on moving along the alignment direction. The conical axis is tilted with respect to the alignment axis. The sign of the tilt angle depends on the handedness of CLC.     

Optical second harmonic generation in ferroelectric liquid crystals under oblique incidence

The second harmonic generation (SHG) in ferroelectric liquid crystals under oblique incidence was studied by using a numerical band matrix method that uses boundary conditions directly. No approximations were used except for the nondepleted fundamental wave. By matching the edge of the full-pitch band with that of the half-pitch band, the SH intensity increased significantly. The thickness (L) dependence of the SH intensity showed L ^6.93–L ^7.09 dependence without the limitation of the thickness.     

Simultaneous control of haze and transmittance using a dye-doped cholesteric liquid crystal cell

We propose a light shutter device using dye-doped cholesteric liquid crystals for a high-visibility see-through display. In the focal-conic state, the proposed device can perfectly block the background image through simultaneous use of light scattering and absorption effects in a single-layered structure. By switching the proposed device placed at the backside of a see-through display, we can choose transparent or high-visibility display modes in a see-through display.     

Flat optics with cholesteric and blue phase liquid crystals

ABSTRACT

The cholesteric (Ch) phase is an ancient liquid crystal (LC) phase, with its roots dating back to the days of Friedrich Reinitzer. It is most well known for its ability to selectively reflect circularly polarised light with the same rotation handedness as the helical structure, and have found applications in polarising and display devices. Most studies to date utilising the reflective properties of ChLCs, however, have treated ChLCs as simple dielectric mirrors in which light follows the law of reflection. We have recently shown that through controlling the phase of the Ch helix, it is possible to control the phase of reflected light. Because the phase can be controlled over 0–2π, the reflected wavefront from a planar device can be designed to possess non-specular properties, such as deflection and lensing. In this paper, we aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon by presenting theoretical and experimental results on the dependence of the reflected light phase on the helix phase, and the effect of chiral handedness on the phenomenon. Also, we show that wavefront manipulation based on the same concept can be achieved in Ch blue phases (BPs), which are chiral LCs with three-dimensional periodicity.     

Anchoring effects on the electrically controlled optical band gap in twisted photonic liquid crystals

We study a one-dimensional twisted photonic liquid crystal (TPLC), consisting of various nematic liquid crystal cells adopting a twisted configuration intercalated by isotropic dielectric layers, submitted to a dc electric field (E^dc ) aligned along the periodicity axis. We write the corresponding Euler–Lagrange equations describing the nematic layer configuration. By assuming arbitrary anchoring quasi-planar boundary conditions, we calculate the equilibrium textures for the nematic, parametrized by the two types of strength of its interaction (polar and azimuthal) with the plane walls. We write the electromagnetic equations in a 4?×?4 matrix representation and using the transfer matrix formalism, we obtain the transmittance and reflectance coefficients for normal incidence as functions of the external electric field and anchoring strengths. We have observed a remarkable dependence of the electric field on the transmission and reflection spectra in opening and closing band gaps.     

Low threshold polymerised cholesteric liquid crystal film lasers with red,green and blue colour

We demonstrate dye-doped low threshold polymerised cholesteric liquid crystal (PCLC) film lasers with red, green and blue (RGB) colour. The polymer network structure of lasers, which were fabricated by washing-out/refilling method, enhanced the stability of the laser thus avoiding the external interference like temperature and electromagnetic field and prevented the efficiency of laser dye from decreasing during polymerisation. The proposed RGB PCLC film lasers have application potential in such as coherent light source, multi-wavelength biomedical light source, white laser and other photonic applications.     

Effective electrically tunable infrared reflectors based on polymer stabilised cholesteric liquid crystals

Electrically tunable infrared (IR) reflectors based on polymer stabilised cholesteric liquid crystals (PSCLC) have been fabricated. The influence of polymerisation time on bandwidth broadening and response time of the IR reflector was investigated. Such IR reflector can reflect broad band of infrared light from 725 to 1435 nm upon application of a DC electric field, while remaining predominantly transparent in the visible region, with the transmittance in the region of 400–700 nm being above 90%. Bandwidth broadening was induced using low operational power with acceptable switching speeds. Model tests reveal that this IR reflector can effectively control the indoor temperature. The distinct properties of such IR reflector make it a good candidate for smart windows of automobiles and buildings to control interior temperature and save energy.     

Nematic liquid crystal gyroids as photonic crystals

ABSTRACT

We demonstrate nematic and cholesteric liquid crystal (LC) gyroids and show their photonic properties as photonic crystals by using numerical modelling. The LC gyroids are designed as composite optical materials, where we take one labyrinth of passages to be a solid dielectric, whereas the other (complementing) labyrinth of passages is taken to be filled by chiral or achiral nematic LC, with the intermediate gyroid surface imposing homeotropic (perpendicular) surface anchoring. The nematic inside the gyroid matrix is shown to exhibit a variety of possible orientational profiles which are characterised by complex networks of topological defects – from ordered, semi-ordered, to completely disordered. The diversity of possible nematic states is shown to lead to a rich structure of photonic bands, which can be tuned by the LC volume fraction and the cholesteric pitch, including control over full – direct and indirect – band gaps.     

Voltage-induced pseudo-dielectric heating and its application for color tuning in a thermally sensitive cholesteric liquid crystal

ABSTRACT

We previously proposed an electrical approach enabling the tuning of the center wavelength λ_c of the cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) bandgap in the full-color visible spectrum based on the electro-thermal effect. The idea involved the design of a negative CLC with a thermally sensitive bandgap feature and the use of a sandwich-type cell with finite electrode conductivity, allowing the control of cell temperature by applied voltage via pseudo-dielectric heating. It has been demonstrated experimentally that the induced pseudo-dielectric heating is predominated by the pseudo-dielectric relaxation originating from the designated cell geometry. On the basis of this technique, key factors determining the tuning efficacy of the temperature and thus λ_c are primarily investigated in this study. Our results suggest that lowering the electrode resistivity and the specific heat conductivity of the cell can promote the maximum tunable temperature range. Expectedly, optimizing the electrode area, cell gap and dielectric permittivity of the CLC favors a decreased relaxation frequency and, in turn, reducing the voltage as well as the frequency required for λ_c tuning.     

Tuning of Photonic band gap via combined effect of electric and optical fields in a blue phase liquid crystal composite

ABSTRACT

Blue phase liquid crystals are soft 3D photonic crystals in which the liquid crystal molecules self-assemble to form a cubic structure with lattice spacing of a few hundred nanometers resulting in selective reflection of colours in the visible spectrum. The corresponding wavelength or the ‘photonic band gap’ can be tuned using various external stimuli such as thermal, electric, magnetic and optical fields. Here, we report efficient tuning of photonic band gap by utilising the combination of electric and optical fields in a blue phase liquid crystalline system. The studies indicate that the chirality of the medium has a direct bearing on the direction of the wavelength shift and the extent of the photonic band gap tunability. More importantly, the synergistic effect of the two fields helps in reversible tuning of the band gap.     

Switchable anti-peeping film for liquid crystal displays from polymer dispersed liquid crystals

Liquid crystals displays (LCDs) currently dominate the display market, wherein a wide viewing angle is considered as one of the most important characteristics. However, for LCDs with wide viewing angles, some private information inevitably becomes more visible; thus, an LCD with a switchable viewing angle has attracted greater interest. Here, we report a novel switchable viewing angle film that can make the viewing angle of an LCD electrically switchable between ±30° and ±60°, i.e. between an anti-peeping mode and a share mode, by 5.0 V is turned on and off, respectively. The response time necessary to change between the modes is in milliseconds. It is believed that it has potential applications in LCDs with high quality.