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Polymer-stabilised liquid crystal devices have found widespread use in intelligent displays and dimming glass applications, but their high driving voltage induces high power consumption and needs to be reduced. In this paper, we use several small phenylacetylene molecule materials with linear structures to reduce the driving voltage and obtain a high contrast ratio in reverse-mode polymer-stabilised cholesteric liquid crystals (RPSCLC). In particular, the drive voltage of the 8-micron-thick sample was reduced by nearly 40%, and the 20-micron-thick sample was reduced by nearly 45%. Additionally, we explore the physical mechanism through which various small phenylacetylene molecule materials improve the electro-optical properties, based on polymer network morphology effects. The results will be of great value for enhancing the use of RPSCLC devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soft actuators have attracted a lot of attention because of their impressive performance and wide range of applications. Liquid crystalline networks (LCNs) are a combination of liquid crystals and polymers, and they are considered to be the most promising materials for creating soft actuators. MXene has a high photothermal conversion efficiency, and it can be a heat-source under near-infrared light. In this paper, we fabricated a MXene/LCN composite film by coating a solution of Ti3C2Tx MXene onto an LCN film with orientation direction and then followed by drying. We observed different types of deformations when we cut the composite film in different directions. We also measured the influence of the near-infrared light intensity on the bending angle, response time, and recovery time of the composite films with different deformations. Finally, we used this composite film to fabricate various biomimetic devices such as biomimetic flowers, artificial irises, mechanical fixtures, and crawling robots. These results demonstrate the great potential of this composite film in soft actuator applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Polymer stabilised liquid crystal (PSLC) is widely used in various applications such as smart windows due to its fast response speed and wide viewing angle. However, there are still limitations in terms of high driving voltage and poor contrast ratio. Therefore, there is a need to explore methods to enhance the electro-optical performance of PSLC devices. In this paper, the influence of a few types of styryl molecules on the electro-optical characteristics of PSLC was investigated. The experimental results demonstrated that the addition of an appropriate amount of small styryl molecules significantly reduced the driving voltage and improved the contrast ratio. For an 8-micron-thick sample, the threshold voltage and saturation voltage were approximately 5.3 V and 6.5 V, respectively, resulting in a contrast ratio of approximately 14.4. For a 20-micron-thick sample, the threshold voltage, saturation voltage, and contrast ratio were approximately 10.2 V, 14.5 V, and 109, respectively. Combined with the effects of different small styryl molecules on the morphology of polymer networks, the physical mechanism of different small styryl molecules to improve electro-optical properties was studied. The findings will contribute to the advancement of RPSCLC devices and their practical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We proposed a polarisation interference filter (PIF) to enlarge the colour gamut of liquid crystal display (LCD) with YAG-LED backlight, and the PIF consists of two crossed polarisers and two liquid crystal layers. The PIF can be used in the backlight unit to improve the colour gamut of LCD by eliminating unwanted colours in the spectrum. When the PIF is integrated into the YAG-LED backlight, the colour gamut of the LCD can be improved from 84% NTSC to 116% NTSC, and the colour gamut is larger than 116% NTSC within 30° polar angle. When a compensation layer is employed, the colour gamut distribution of LCD is more uniform at full viewing angles. The PIF has great potential for achieving a wide colour gamut display. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]