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In a narrow temperature window in going from the isotropic to highly chiral orders, cholesteric liquid crystals exhibit so-called blue phases, consisting of different morphologies of long, space-filling double twisted cylinders. Those of cubic spatial symmetry have attracted considerable attention in recent years as templates for soft photonic materials. The latter often requires the creation of monodomains of predefined orientation and size, but their engineering is complicated by a lack of comprehensive understanding of how blue phases nucleate and transform into each other at a submicrometer length scale. In this work, we accomplish this by intercepting nucleation processes at intermediate stages with fast cross-linking of a stabilizing polymer matrix. We reveal using transmission electron microscopy, synchrotron small-angle X-ray diffraction, and angle-resolved microspectroscopy that the grid of double-twisted cylinders undergoes highly coordinated, diffusionless transformations. In light of our findings, the implementation of several applications is discussed, such as temperature-switchable QR codes, micro-area lasing, and fabrication of blue phase liquid crystals with large domain sizes., The arrangements of defect lines in liquid crystal blue phases provide promising templates for photonic crystals. Here Liu et al. investigate in detail how inter-phase transitions proceed, by intercepting nucleation with on-demand cross linking of a supporting polymer matrix.

Liquid crystal elastomers, serving as a new kind of intelligent material, have demonstrated important application in the fields of microactuators, artificial muscles, microfluid transportation and intelligent sensors by virtue of their characteristics of spontaneous reversible deformation under external field stimulation. In this paper, we have reviewed the recent research progress of liquid crystal actuator materials, including of phototropic, thermotropic, photothermal and solvent/humidity-based liquid crystal actuators. The processing techniques, deformation response and actuation mechanism of liquid crystal elastomers were discussed and the relative application prospects were put forward. This work will provide important insights for the construction and development of novel liquid crystal optical devices.

Composite systems of liquid crystals (LCs) and polymers have been extensively studied in various forms such as polymer-dispersed LCs and polymer-stabilised LCs. Blending LCs and polymers is an effective approach to design functional materials with stimuli responsiveness and durability. Here, we show the development of a novel composite material with crosslinked azobenzene LC polymer (PAzo) and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) aiming at the improvement of photomobile polymer materials in mechanical properties. The composite films were prepared by photopolymerisation of azobenzene monomers in PDMS elastomers. By forming phase separated structure, in which PAzo chains were dispersed in PDMS matrix, fracture strain of photomobile polymer materials was significantly enhanced. The composite film showed macroscopic bending upon irradiation with UV light. This result implies that PAzo domains in polymer matrix can work as microactuators to afford macroscopic deformation of the whole film. The further improve...

We developed a novel block copolymer composed of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) and polymethacrylate functionalized with liquid–cryst-alline oligothiophene by using the atom transfer radical polymeriza...

A reversible solvent-sensitive actuator with a continuous bending/debending process is fabricated by over-infiltration of liquid crystal monomers into a colloidal template and subsequent photopolymerization. The fabricated actuator exhibits a maximum bending angle of 1080° in 1.58 s in dichloromethane, accompanied with successive debending in 0.32 s. The behavior of the actuator can be modulated by changing the solvent type, film thickness/length and molar ratio of A6OCB/C6M. This study will provide an important experimental and theoretical basis for the development of novel actuators.

We synthesized polymers containing a liquid-crystalline (LC) oligothiophene moiety in the side chain. This oligothiophene shows LC behavior between 101°C and 194°C in its original form, while when incorporated into the side chains of a polymer, the resultant polymer showed a nematic phase in a much wider temperature range. Thin films of these polymers showed nano-phase-separated structures with domain sizes of 15–40 nm upon annealing.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on conjugated polymers exhibiting polarized emission have attracted much attention because of their potential as backlights for conventional liquid crystal (LC) displays and 3-D displays. We have reported a new series of LC polymers based on donor-acceptor architecture containing an oxadiazole (OXD) and several amine moieties in the same side chain, which exhibit bipolar character with a wide energy band gap. In this study, to develop phosphorescent OLEDs with polarized emission, we synthesized a platinum complex, Pt(4-decyloxy)salen, with emitting property, and fabricated the device consisting of Pt complex as a guest and LC polymers as a host material. The Pt complex exhibited high thermal stability, good solubility and an emission peak at 530 nm in dichloromethane. To obtain electroluminescense from the Pt complex, we fabricated ITO/rubbed PEDOT:PSS/Pt(4-decyloxy)salen:host polymer/MgAg devices. The devices emitted a yellowish green light, which was dominated...

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on chromophore-containing liquid crystals (LCs) can emit polarized light due to self-assembly of mesogenic chromophores. The stability of LC phases in LC polymers with a mesogenic group in the main chain is higher than that in the polymers containing a mesogenic group in the side chain. In this study, a novel family of polyesters containing a carbazole moiety as a hole-transporting unit and an oxadiazole (OXD) moiety as an electron-transporting unit in the main chain, P10-DOXDCz and P16-DOXDCz, were designed and synthesized. These polyesters were prepared by transesterification of N-hexyl-3,6-di[2-([1,3,4]oxadiazol-5-yl)-4-methylbenzoate]carbazole and 1,10-decanediol or 1,16-hexadecanediol at 220 °C for 20 h. They showed a nematic phase. Both P10-DOXDCz and P16-DOXDCz emitted intense blue fluorescence with a maximum at 439 nm and 450 nm in thin films, respectively, and their fluorescence quantum yields were 0.74 and 0.81 in solution, respectively. Both compounds...

We have investigated the photoresponsive behavior of homogeneously aligned low-azobenzene-concentration crosslinked liquid-crystalline polymers. We compared the thermal contraction and photocontraction of the films, and show that upon UV irradiation, they bend efficiently towards the actinic light source. The photoinduced bending is studied both under continuous-wave irradiation and irradiation with nanosecond pulses. Pulsed irradiation revealed that the photomechanical response can take place within sub-millisecond time scale, and that even a single laser pulse can cause the sample to bend.

We prepared crosslinked azobenzene liquid-crystalline polymer brushes on flexible polymer films by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization and a subsequent crosslinking reaction. Reversible isomerization of azobenzene moieties was observed in the crosslinked films upon irradiation with UV and visible light. Upon exposure to linearly polarized UV light, the films bent slightly along the polarization direction of light toward an actinic light source. After turning off the UV light, the films maintained the bent shape, and then reverted to the initial form by irradiation with visible light. We have successfully developed a novel photomobile material with crosslinked azobenzene liquid-crystalline polymer brushes.

The large-area formation of functional micropatterns with liquid crystals is of great significance for diversified applications in interdisciplinary fields. Meanwhile, the control of molecular alignment in the patterns is fundamental and prerequisite for the adequate exploitation of their photoelectric properties. However, it would be extremely complicated and challenging for discotic liquid crystals (DLCs) to achieve the goal, because they are insensitive to external fields and surface chemistry. Herein, a simple method of patterning and aligning DLCs on flat substrates is disclosed through precise control of the formation and dewetting of the capillary liquid bridges, within which the DLC molecules are confined. Large-area uniform alignment occurs spontaneously due to directional shearing force when the solvent is slowly evaporated and programmable patterns could be directly generated on desired substrates. Moreover, the in-plane column direction of DLCs is tunable by slightly tailoring their chemical structures which changes their self-assembly behaviors in liquid bridges. The patterned DLCs show molecular orientation-dependent charge transport properties and are promising for templating self-assembly of other materials. The study provides a facile method for manipulation of the macroscopic patterns and microscopic molecular orientation which opens up new opportunities for electronic applications of DLCs.

We prepared homogeneously aligned azobenzene liquid-crystalline elastomer (LCE) films with low T g and explored their photomechanical properties. Upon irradiation with UV light, the films bent toward a light source at room temperature. The mechanical force generated upon exposure to UV light was evaluated by thermomechanical analysis. It was found that the mechanical force generated by photo-irradiation increased with an increase in the cross-linking density. In particular, an LCE film containing 80 mol% azobenzene cross-linker produced a force of over 1 MPa by photo-irradiation, which enabled the film to lift an object 20 times heavier than itself. The degree of contraction by photo-irradiation increased with an increase in temperature and light intensity. Bending could be brought about by more than 5000 times with periodic irradiation. Furthermore, it was found that the LCE films exhibited bending and unbending behaviour by irradiation with sunlight.

Fabrication of a microlens array film was explored by means of photoinduced reorientation of dye-doped polymerizable liquid crystals (LCs). LC monomer/photoinitiator mixtures doped with a small amount of an oligothiophene derivative were irradiated with a 488-nm beam from an Ar+ laser. Then the sample cell was periodically moved. After these two processes were repeated for a few tens times, remaining photoinitiators were quenched by irradiation with UV light. Observation of the cells with a polarizing optical microscope revealed that the molecular alignment of LCs induced by the Ar+ laser beam remained unchanged after the beam was turned off and a microlens array with a square-lattice type was obtained. This indicates that formation of the microlens and photopolymerization of the LC monomers are brought about simultaneously in a small area. The fabricated microlens has polarization selectivity that reflects molecular alignment. The focal length of the microlens arrays could be changed by controlling the i...

We studied the photo-induced dynamics in a LC polymer film including azobenzene by using a time-resolved and a microscopic technique. The film was confined in a liquid crystal cell, while it is a photomobile film under a free standing condition, which is triggered by the photoisomerization of azobenezene. From the result of the time-resolved measurements, the change inside the film induced by UV irradiation was highly anisotropic polarization change. Microscopic observation revealed that the film was consisted of ordered and disordered region with a patched structure, and the UV induced change was travelled in the ordered region on the order of seconds.

One- and two-photon induced phase transition behavior of low-molecular-weight and polymer liquid crystals (LCs) was observed. When a photochemical reaction of a two-photon absorbing dye was induced in a nematic (N) LC, N-to-isotropic (I) phase transition was induced with high spatial resolution. As a result of the phase transition, the refractive index of the materials was changed by two-photon processes. Furthermore, the I phase induced in the polymer LC was thermally stable and it still appeared after heating above N–I phase transition temperature. The results reported here are the first observation of the photochemical phase transition of the LCs induced by a two-photon process.

In order to lower the operating voltage of molecularly doped electroluminescent (EL) devices using a low-molecular-weight liquid crystal (LC), we added a small amount of electrolytes (tetrabutylammonium bromide: TBAB) to the EL devices. The addition of TBAB decreased the driving voltages by one order of magnitude. Furthermore, the EL devices containing TBAB could be operated under not only a dc mode but also an ac mode. It has become apparent that the emission intensity increases in the order of smectic A phase

Cross-linked liquid-crystalline (LC) polymers with a mesomorphic diarylethene were prepared to demonstrate a versatile strategy for cross-linked photochromic LC polymers as photomobile materials. Upon exposure to UV light to cause photocyclization of the diarylethene chromophore, the cross-linked polymer films bend toward an actinic light source. By irradiation with visible light to cause a closed-ring to open-ring isomerization, the bent films revert to the initial flat state. Without visible-light irradiation, the bent films remain bent even at 120 °C, indicating high thermal stability of the cross-linked diarylethene LC polymers.

The change in transmittance of a 1.55-μm laser beam was investigated by a photochemical phase transition of an azobenzene liquid-crystalline polymer. Effects of the intensity of actinic light and temperature on the photoresponsive behavior were explored using laser beams at 633 nm and 1.55 μm. It was found that the intensity of the actinic light or temperature affected on the response, regardless of the wavelength of the probe beam.

Steady-state and transient photocurrent measurements were carried out to study the charge carrier transport properties of polymer liquid crystal (LC) containing oxadiazole (OXD) and amine moieties in the same side chain. The steady-state photocurrent measurement with asymmetric electrodes of ITO and Al and a short penetration depth of the illumination light indicated that both electrons and holes can be transported in this film. The transient hole photocurrent observed by time-of-flight (TOF) experiments was dispersive at room temperature. The hole drift mobility significantly depended on temperature and electric field and was determined to be 6.1 x 10(-8) cm2/Vs at a field of 9.1 x 10(5) V/cm. According to the disorder formalism, the Gaussian width of the density of states was determined to be 170 meV for holes. Despite the indication of possible electron transport in this film, we could not determine the electron mobility by TOF experiments due to strong dispersive photocurrent. We discuss the present charge transport properties of the film in relation to a large dipole attributed to an electrical push-pull structure of p-dimethylaminophenyl-substitited OXD moiety in polymer LC and its electroluminescent properties.

The photoinduced reorientation behavior of dye-doped nematic liquid crystals (LCs) was investigated. Thiophene derivatives with ester moieties were newly synthesized as the guest dye molecule. The liquid-crystalline behavior and optical properties of these compounds were evaluated, and the effect of the dye structure on the photoinduced reorientation behavior of the dye-doped LCs was investigated. The photoinduced formation of diffraction rings was observed as a result of the self-phase modulation effect at the intensity of 11 W/cm2, when an Ar+ laser beam at 488 nm was irradiated above the threshold intensity. Comparison of the lowest threshold light intensity for the appearance of the diffraction rings revealed that the thiophene dye with ester moieties directly bound to the terminal thiophene shows a lower threshold intensity than those of any other dyes.

Cross-linked liquid-crystalline polymer films were prepared by polymerization of mixtures containing azobenzene monomers and cross-linkers with azobenzene moieties. Two types of the cross-linked liquid-crystalline polymer films were prepared: monodomain films and polydomains films. Photoirradiation of the monodomain films with UV linearly polarized light (LPL) gave rise to bending of the films toward actinic light along the polarization direction, when the light polarization was parallel to the rubbing direction. When the two directions were perpendicular to each other, the bending was isotropic without a preferential direction. On the other hand, exposure of the polydomain films to UV LPL led to bending of the films always along the polarization direction of the actinic light. This means that one can induce bending of the film along any direction precisely by choosing the polarization direction of the actinic light.

Optical switching of a 1.55-μm laser beam was explored by means of photochemical phase transition of polymer and low-molecular-weight azobenzene liquid crystals (LCs). It was observed that the 1.55-μm laser beam could be repeatedly switched by turning on and off the actinic light, and a large change in refractive index was induced in the azobenzene LCs at the near infrared region. It was also found that controlling the thickness of LCs could enhance the change in the transmittance of the 1.55-μm laser.

Recent progress in alignment modulation of azobenzene-containing liquid crystal systems by photochemical reactions has been reviewed by dividing the modulation methods into two types: phase transitions (order–disorder change) and change of liquid crystal directors (order–order change). First, photochemical phase transitions and alignment changes of liquid crystals in guest/host mixtures and polymers are summarized. Then, alignment control of liquid crystals by linearly polarized light and photoactive surface layers is discussed. Finally, recent applications of alignment change and photochemical phase transitions of liquid crystals in holographic technology and photomechanical effects are introduced. In addition, future possible applications for a variety of practical devices, such as display devices, optical switching and reversible optical image storage, are mentioned.

Electroluminescent (EL) behavior has been evaluated in a cell that contained molecular dispersion of 1,4-bis( N , N -diphenylaminophenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazolyl)benzene (OXD) in various liquid crystals (LC); 4-hexyloxy-4′-cyanobiphenyl, 4-octyloxy-4′-cyanobiphenyl (8OCB) as low molecular-weight LCs and poly(8-(4-cyano-4′-biphenyl)-1-octanoylacrylate), poly(11-(4-cyano-4′-biphenyl)-1-undecanoylacrylate) as polymer LCs. Among the guest/host mixtures examined, the OXD/8OCB mixture showed the most stable LC phase even at the fraction of OXD up to 30 wt.%. EL emission was observed above the temperature where the OXD/8OCB mixture showed an LC phase. Furthermore, an EL device was fabricated that consisted of interdigital electrodes coated onto a glass substrate. It was found that the EL emission from the device was highly polarized.

Formation of gratings by means of the photoinduced alignment change of polymer liquid crystals (PLCs) has been explored in a glassy state. To obtain high diffraction efficiency (η), we synthesized highly birefringent PLCs containing an azobenzene group directly connected with a tolane moiety (3ATm), in which the alkyl spacer length ( CH 2)m was varied as m=6, 9 and 12. It was found that the values of birefringence in all the PLCs were about 0.4. The behaviors of the photoinduced alignment change and the formation of gratings were found to be dependent on the alkyl spacer length of 3ATm.

Unique characteristics were observed in phase-type gratings which were formed in polymer liquid crystal (PLC) films. We have investigated the formation and the properties of the holographic gratings recorded in PLCs with azobenzene moieties (photoresponsive unit). Two types of PLCs were examined: homopolymers of azobenzene monomers (PALC) and copolymers with a tolane moiety (mesogenic unit with a high birefringence) in the side chain. The diffraction efficiency (η) was enhanced in the LC phase. We obtained the value of η of 31% while it was less than 1% in a glassy state in the Raman-Nath regime. This difference may be due to the modulation of refractive index (Δn) based on alignment change of mesogens in the PLC film. In addition, we attempted the holographic image storage of three-dimensional (3-D) objects in the PLC film. The 3-D object was reconstructed with high resolution (>5,000 lines/mm).

Films were formed by casting and shearing ethyl cellulose in chloroform at high coating speed and thin coating thickness. The films were used as alignment layers for liquid crystals. Atomic force microscopy and polarizing optical microscopy (POM) were used to identify the banded-texture structure of the films. The alignments of nematic liquid crystal 4-cyano-4′-n-pentylbiphenyl (5CB) droplets on the films were observed by POM. Furthermore, the time-dependent alignment behaviour of 5CB on the films was recorded and studied. © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry

Electrochemical and electroluminescent (EL) properties of a polymer liquid crystal (PLC) composed of an oxadiazole moiety as an electron-transporting unit and an amine moiety as a hole-transporting...

Electroluminescent (EL) properties of a low-molecular-weight liquid crystal (LC), which is composed of an oxadiazole moiety as an electron-transporting unit and an amine moiety as a hole-transporting unit, were investigated. The most significant characteristic of the LC is to possess bipolar carrier-transporting abilities. The bipolar LC makes it possible to fabricate a simple EL device. We fabricated an EL device (cell gap: 2 μm) with configuration of indium tin oxide (ITO)/LC/MgAg. The device emitted visible light at above 10 V. In particular, the values of luminance and current density of an EL device containing poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)/poly(styrenesulfonic acid) (PEDOT) as a hole-injecting layer were ten and six times higher than those of the ITO/LC/MgAg device without the PEDOT layer, respectively. Furthermore, surfaces of the glass substrate with an ITO electrode and a PEDOT layer were rubbed to align mesogens. Dichroic ratio of the emission from an ITO/rubbed PEDOT/LC/MgAg device was estima...

The recent highlights in the photoinduced modulation of the liquid-crystalline (LC) alignment and their applications to photonics are reviewed. The molecular alignment of LCs can be controlled by either the photochemical process or the photophysical process and we can change the birefringence as well as refractive index of the material by the modulation of the LC alignment. The photoresponsive LCs show very quick response to stimulus light: the response time is ∼200 ns. Furthermore, the extremely large refractive index modulation (Δ n =∼10 −1 ) can be also induced. The photoresponsive LCs, therefore, are potential materials for holographic recording and other photonic device.

Formation of intensity gratings was studied with two s-polarized (s+s) writing beams in polymer liquid crystals (PLCs) containing a photochromic moiety (azobenzene) and a mesogenic unit (tolane, T-AB; cyanobiphenyl, CB-AB) by means of photoinduced change in alignment of PLCs. Remarkable differences were observed between these two PLCs. T-AB showed higher values of the diffraction efficiency (η) and a faster response than CB-AB. In photoinduced alignment behavior of the PLCs, T-AB exhibited a faster change in alignment than CB-AB with the value of η about 30% in the Raman−Nath regime and the maximum value for modulation of the refractive index (Δn‘) of about 0.08. It was revealed that η and Δn‘ are dependent on the structure of the mesogenic unit. In addition, we attempted the holographic image storage of three-dimensional (3-D) objects in the T-AB films. The 3-D object was reconstructed with high resolution (>5000 lines/mm).

Photoinduced reorientation (photon-mode process) and thermal effects in an oligothiophene-doped liquid crystal (LC) system were investigated by self-diffraction measurements in different experimental configurations. The results obtained in homeotropic sample cells were compared with those obtained in homogeneous cells. Optical Freedericksz transition could be induced by low-intensity light in the homeotropic cell, and the induced birefringence was affected by the thermal effect. No photoinduced reorientation effect was observed in the homogeneous cell in the present experimental configuration; however, due to the thermal modulation of the refractive index of the LC, which arises from light absorption, self-diffraction phenomena could also be observed.

By using the depth selective imaging method, we studied the UV induced change in a photomobile liquid crystalline polymer film. With 1 μm depth resolution, each slice inside the film was selectively observed. A network-like structure mixed with the ordered and disordered regions of molecules in the middle of the film, and a rubbed polymer layer at the bottom of the film were observed. In each slice of the film, the phase change induced by UV light was observed strongly dependent on the director direction, which indicates the ordering change of the liquid crystalline molecules in the director direction. It took several tens of seconds for the ordering change caused by the collaborative interaction between the molecules. Furthermore, it was suggested that the UV induced change travelled from the bottom layer to the middle layer on the micron order.

We studied the effect of the ratio between the monomer and cross-linker molecules in the azobenene included liquid crystal polymer films by using the heterodyne transient grating (HD-TG) technique, which is one of the time-resolved measurement techniques. Depending on the ratio, the magnitude of the refractive index change, its anisotropy, and the lifetime of the cis isomer of azobenzene, generated by a UV pulse irradiation. By increasing the cross-linker ratio, the refractive index change and its anisotropy was reduced, indicating less ability for the motion, while slower lifetime was observed by increasing the monomer ratio, indicating that the film is difficult to return the original shape by a visiblelight irradiation. The obtained dynamics was consistent with the functionality of the films.

An organic semiconductor is material that is capable of transporting a charge, that is, electrons and holes. By this characteristic, that is, the property to support a current flow, they can be used in various electronic devices. In the early 1970s, organic semiconductors have been put to their first practical use in the photosensitive drum of copy machines. Thereafter, it began to be used as a practical material for organic electroluminescent (EL) elements in the 1990s. In recent years, research and development has been actively aimed to practical use in organic solar cells and organic transistors.

The dynamics of the photochemical phase transition process of guest/host liquid crystals (LCs) containing an azobenzene derivative as a photosensitive chromophore was studied. We proposed a model for the photochemical phase transition of the guest/host LCs and simulated the change in transmittance through LCs due to the phase transition on the basis of this model. Upon irradiation at 366 nm, the cis isomer was generated randomly in the irradiated site, and then the transmittance of the probe light was slightly decreased because of the disturbance of the alignment of the nematic (N) phase by the cis isomers. Upon further irradiation, the N-to-isotropic (I) phase transition took place in local domains, and the transmittance of the probe light decreased with the growth of these local I domains. In the simulations, three factors were found to affect significantly the dynamics of the photochemical phase transition and the change in transmittance of light: the number of I domains formed by irradiation, the gro...

We studied the behavior of photoinduced alignment change of a polymer liquid crystal (PLC) containing an azobenzene moiety in the side chain and formation of a grating by means of the photoinduced alignment of PLCs. The alignment change was evaluated by irradiation with s-polarized light at 488 nm. We investigated the effects of light intensity and incident angles of writing beams (two s-polarized (s + s) configuration) on grating formation in PLC films, and explored the relation between the alignment change and diffraction efficiency. The diffraction efficiency showed a maximum when the change in photoinduced alignment was almost complete in the bright area of interference patterns. The maximum value obtained for the modulation of the refractive index was 0.04. These results indicate that a PLC with an azobenzene moiety is effective under (s + s) polarization conditions, compared with other azopolymer systems.

Refractive-index modulation by change in alignment of liquid crystals (LCs) has been explored: order to disorder phase transition of LCs by photochemical reactions of photoresponsive molecules, order to order alignment change of LCs in the LC phases induced by photochemical reactions. In the order to disorder phase transition of LCs, the refractive index can be changed very quickly while the change in the refractive index is smaller than those induced by the order to order alignment change of LC molecules. In-plane (2 D) and out-of-plane (3 D) alignment change of LCs have been studied. With the out-of-plane alignment change of LC molecules, refractive-index modulation not only to linearly polarized light but also to unpolarized light can be achieved. The alignment change of LCs without photochemical processes is also discussed.

Photochemical phase transition of polymer liquid crystals (LCs) with hydoxyazobenzene moieties has been studied. By irradiation with the laser pulse at 355 nm, photochemical LC-isotropic (I) phase transition of the polymer LCs was induced in microsecond timescale. When the irradiated sample was kept in the dark, the initial LC phase recovered thermally. The response time of the I-LC phase transition was 300 ms in hydoxyazobenzene LCs. while it was 1.5 s in O-alkyl analogues. In the cis-trans isomerization process in hydroxyazoben zenes, the hydrazone was produced by proton transfer, and this tautomer is converted into trans-azobenzenes. In the thermal cis-trans isomerization, hydroxyazobenzenes prefer this two-step mechanism to the one-step mechanism because the activation energy of this mechanism is lower than that of the one-step mechanism. Thus, the thermal isomerization occurred effectively, and the recovery of the LC phase took place quickly in the present polymer LC system The results obtained here suggest an approach to accelerate the thermal recovery of the LC phase.

The unique optoelectric feature of structurally simple surfactants was presented. Phosphonium salts as a novel class of thermotropic liquid crystals were used to explore the spatial arrangement of ions in multilayer self-assemblies based on the surfactant complexes. Through the evaluation of second-order nonlinear optical property of the phosphonium self-assemblies, it was revealed that the phosphonium thin film assemblies can be regarded as a polar thin film consisting of two-dimensional ionic layers with noncentrosymmetric atomic arrangement. Such spontaneous formation of the in-plane polar structure was assumed to originate from the variety of bonding manner (i.e., the characteristic electronic structure) of phosphorus atom. Furthermore, it was also found that the macroscopic polar order is enhanced by application of an external electric field.

The direction of molecular switching, i.e., the sign of the electro-optic response, in ferroelectric liquid crystals depends on the polarity of the applied electric field as well as on the sign of the spontaneous polarization. Light-induced switching of the molecules by ultraviolet light was found in a photochromic ferroelectric liquid crystal at fixed field polarity. A high contrast image was recorded whose contrast could easily be inverted by reversing the field polarity. Moreover, in the presence of bistable boundary conditions, the optically recorded image can be stored after removal of the electric field. The effect of light-assisted switching in the photochromic ferroelectric liquid crystal seems to be promising for applications such as optical recording, all-optical switches, and image storage.

Formation of intensity gratings was studied with two s‐polarized (s+s) configuration in polymer liquid crystals (PLCs) containing a photochromic moiety (azobenzene) and a mesogenic unit (tolane, T‐...

Films were formed by coating hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) or ethyl cellulose (EC) with different kinds of solvents at high coating speeds and thin coating thicknesses. These films were used as alignment layers for liquid crystals. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and polarizing optical microscopy (POM) were used to identify the banded texture structure of the films. The alignments of a nematic liquid crystal 5CB droplet on those films were observed by POM. Further, a novel cycle disclination line was recorded and studied. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 82: 2770–2774, 2001