Novel liquid crystal-based integrated optical devices with >140GHz electrical tuning are presented. Initial results with Bragg wavelength tuning covering five 25GHz WDM channel spacing have been achieved with 170V (peak-to-peak) sinusoidal voltages applied across electro-patterned ITO-covered glass electrodes placed 60μm apart. These prototype devices were fabricated using direct UV grating writing, with an evanescent field coupling into a liquid crystal overlay through an etched window. Two distinct threshold conditions are observed, manifesting only during the increase of supply voltage and forming a hysteretic tuning curve. The secondary threshold which takes place at higher voltages has never been reported before. We believe these threshold points are related to the formation and bleaching of disclination lines. Geometric and effective index consideration could not explain the similar tuning behaviour displayed by both TE and TM polarised light.
We report on the experimental demonstration of electrically tunable Bragg grating using liquid crystals. Such concept and device have been modelled in the past, but not realised experimentally. Using Direct UV writing technique, a waveguide and Bragg grating are simultaneously patterned in a planar silica on silicon substrate. Overcladding in the vicinity of the grating can be replaced by liquid crystals to exploit their electro-optic properties. The interactions of the evanescent field with the variable refractive index of the liquid crystal allow the tuning of the centre wavelength of the filter. In this way a 35 GHz tunable planar Bragg grating using liquid crystal and electric field was demonstrated.
We report on reorientation and two-beam coupling process in liquid crystal cells with different aligning polymer layers. Polymers such as poly(N-vinyl carbazole), pure and doped with fullerenes as well as standard polyimide layers were considered. Electric field distribution inside a liquid crystal cell was modelled and different penetration depths into the liquid crystal bulk were calculated depending on the modulation of surface electric field. The characteristics features of reorientation process were studied via measurements of capacitance with an increasing DC field. The evidence of strong screening was found in cells with photoconducting polymers, as well as in those with thicker polyimide layers. Surface screening layers could be discharged by illuminating a cell with light to induce selective reorientation of a liquid crystal director.
A planar Bragg grating in silica is used to form an integrated optical refractive index sensor. The device, inherently suited to remote sensing using single mode transmission fibre, is shown to clearly detect phase transitions in a nematic liquid crystal and in water. Transitions from ordered to isotropic, gas to liquid and liquid to solid as well as the reverse transitions can all be clearly identified. The sensor also allows supercooled liquid to be easily identified, a task previously found challenging by other sensor technologies.
We report on asymmetric two-beam coupling and the ways of controlling it in liquid crystals cells with photoconducting polymer layers. The cells had one of the substrates covered with a photoconductive polymer layer, namely PVK, photosensitised with C60 to respond to visible light. Efficient gain was measured in 30 micron thick cells with two incident beams having the same intensity. We present a model of two-beam coupling gain based on the build-up and discharge of surface charge screening layers, spatially modulated due to the photoconductivity of doped PVK. The simulation of electric field distribution inside a liquid crystal cell for different two-beam coupling grating spacing showed different penetration of field into the liquid crystal bulk. The characteristics of dynamics, magnitude of two-beam coupling and the efficiency of diffraction were determined for different values of applied DC field, cell configuration and liquid crystals. We found that the direction of energy flow was determined just by the cell tilt and not by the DC field bias.
We present results on DC field and light-induced photorefractive-like gratings in liquid crystal cells made with photosensitive polymer layers. Surface charge layers that develop on a liquid crystal-polymer interface are responsible for screening the liquid crystal bulk from an external DC field. These layers can be selectively discharged via polymer photoconductivity and lead to liquid crystal reorientation grating. Efficient two-beam coupling gain can arise from the reorientation grating for relatively high DC field (above 30 V). For lower voltages, strong diffraction can be observed that reduces the gain. Two-beam coupling gain and diffraction can also be controlled by experimental geometry and liquid crystal alignment. The simulated profile of electric field shows that its penetration depth depends on grating spacing.
Orientation of a liquid crystal on an aligning surface is characterized by the direction of an easy axis, e and anchoring energy, W. Traditional rubbed aligning layers provide a rigid surface and a strong anchoring of LC (W>10-1 erg cm-2). Therefore, magnetic or electric field usually does not reorient director on the aligning surface, and both of these parameters remain constant during the application of the field to the LC cell. Novel aligning materials, such as photoaligning and brush- like orientants possess very soft surface, containing flexible groups and usually provide much smaller anchoring energy (W<10-2 erg cm-3). In this case the reorientation of the director on the aligning surface is essential. In this report we show that the surface director reorientation can result in the realignment of flexible fragments of a weak anchoring photoaligning surface, i.e. in the modification of the aligning surface. Therefore, both the easy axis and the anchoring energy of the soft aligning layer can be changed during the application of external field to LC cell. The effect of the aligning surface modification induced by director reorientation on a soft surface of polyvinylcinnamate (PVCN) was found in a cell filled with LC 5CB. Namely, we observed that application of electric field results in the producing of a transient pretilt angle of 5CB on the PVCN surface, which relaxed to the initial state after switching off the external field during about 10 min. To describe the obtained results we propose to consider the interface containing LC molecules and flexible fragments of the aligning layer as an LC with effectively high orientation viscosity (gamma) s. Anchoring energy and easy axis of the LC corresponds to its equilibrium state. In the studied case the value (gamma) s approximately =5 P is appeared to be in fifty times greater than the value (gamma) 1 of 5CB.
We report a novel azimuthal anchoring transition of nematic liquid crystal on a polysiloxane-cinnamate treated surface under the UV irradiation. It is found, that the direction of the light-induced easy axis strongly depends on the irradiation time. Under short exposure times the orienting surface provides an orientation of LC parallel to the direction of the uV light polarization. Longer times give the orthogonal to the UV polarization orientation of LC. There is region of exposure times that give a bistable anchoring conditions and domains with different directions of the director orientation. We propose a phenomenological model of this anchoring transition and surface bistability based on the competition between trans-cis isomerization of the side fragments of the polysiloxane-cinnamate material and cross-linking photoreaction of the transform of side fragments resulting in orthogonal molecular easy axes.
The polyvinylcinnamate modified by the partial substitution of side chains for stearoyl fragments has been investigated. An oblique liquid crystal alignment with pretilt angle values controlled by the concentration of the stearoyl groups is obtained. The double degeneracy of an easy axis induced by polarized-light-irradiation technique is also verified.
Review of our results of the steadies of the distribution of the director of a nematic liquid crystal in a cell with photosensitive aligning layers is presented. It is shown that a doubly degenerate easy orientation axis is induced on the nematic-orientant interface. It was also found that the degeneracy of the easy axis orientation could be removed by NLC molecules flow during LC cell filling and an oblique liquid crystal orientation is realized. The theoretical and experimental investigations of the reorientation of the director toward the light-induced easy axis caused by light-induced adsorption of dye molecules are presented. Threshold and nonthreshold effects are considered.
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