Brief review of recent research on blue phase liquid crystal materials and devices

Both polymer stabilization and bent-shaped molecule doping strategies are utilized to widen the blue phase range of liquid crystals. The molecular structures of compositions are optimized for high thermo-optical and electro-optical performances. A low temperature applicable blue phase liquid crystal with suppressed hysteresis is achieved. The bistability of one blue phase liquid crystal is investigated. Based on these materials, fast tunable devices such as gratings with polarization insensitivity are designed and fabricated. The materials and device designs demonstrated here are suitable in wide applications requiring fast response time.