Open AccessDual-mode liquid crystal grating based on photo- and nanoparticle-induced alignment effects
Author(s) -
HongPing Lin,
ChengChi Tai
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.27.011264
Subject(s) - materials science , liquid crystal , grating , birefringence , nanoparticle , optics , diffraction grating , diffraction efficiency , phase (matter) , optoelectronics , nanotechnology , chemistry , organic chemistry , physics
A silica-nanoparticle-and-azo-dye-doped liquid crystal (LC) phase grating with multistable and dynamic modes based on photo- and nanoparticle-induced alignments was demonstrated. The photoalignment suppressed the electrophoretic movement of the silica nanoparticles in the hybrid aligned nematic (HAN) LC cell to maintain the vertical orientation of LCs during the electrical operation process by means of the azo dyes adsorbed on the silica networks in the homogeneously aligned side of the sample, and contributed two LC structures to form a grating. Through the excitation of a DC pulse with proper polarity and an AC voltage, the multistable and dynamic diffraction efficiencies of the grating were achieved, respectively, by electrophoretically controlled silica nanoparticles and the electrically controlled birefringence effect of LCs.