Mechanisms of Photorefractivity in Liquid Crystals
S. Bartkiewicz, K. Matczyszyn, J. Mysliwiec, A. Miniewicz and F. Kajzar
We report four types of mechanisms occurring in photorefractive liquid crystal panels based on hybrid construction. The photorefractive liquid crystals are widely studied due to their potential use in many optical devices employing the strength of holographic techniques. There is no single material, which can be equally used for all photonic applications. However, all these functions can be fully exploited in liquid crystal cells by a proper cell construction as well as a proper choice of materials and by tailoring their properties. The key significance in those systems posses the liquid crystal molecules. An unique property of low-molar mass liquid crystals is their ability for changing the effective index of refraction as a result of an action of electric field or interaction with photochromic molecules. Designed by us optically photorefractive panels are the active elements of image processing systems.
Keywords: nematic liquid crystals, photoconducting polymers, photochromic molecules, photorefractive materials