Optically activated shutter using a photo-tunable short-pitch chiral nematic liquid crystal

S. M. Morris, M. M. Qasim, K. T. Cheng, F. Castles, D. H. Ko, D. J. Gardiner, S. Nosheen, T. D. Wilkinson, H. J. Coles, C. Burgess, L. Hill

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

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Abstract

We report the demonstration of an optically activated shutter based upon a short-pitch chiral nematic liquid crystal (LC) device sandwiched between crossed polarizers. This LC is comprised of photo-active chiral dopants. In the trans-state, the LC appears dark between crossed polarizers due to the very short pitch. As the pitch is extended through exposure to ultraviolet light, the device becomes transmissive reaching a maximum for a particular value of the pitch. As a result, it is possible to switch between the light and dark states by subjecting the device to visible light so as to cause a cis-trans photo-isomerisation.

Original languageEnglish
Article number101105
JournalApplied Physics Letters
Volume103
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - 2 Sep 2013

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