We investigate a novel approach for controlling the alignment of a fast-switching chiral nematic liquid crystal state using a high resolution two-photon absorption laser scanning lithography technique with aberration correction that permits the engineering of photonic structures in-situ. Walls of polymer network are engineered parallel and perpendicular to the helical axis of a uniform lying helix in chiral nematic liquid crystals in order to stabilize the alignment in the absence of an elect...

Self-assembled periodic structures based upon chiral liquid crystalline materials have significant potential in the field of photonics ranging from fast-switching optoelectronic devices to low-threshold lasers. The flexoelectro-optic effect, which is observed in chiral nematic liquid crystals (LCs) when an electric field is applied perpendicular to the helical axis, has significant potential as it exhibits analogue switching in 10–100 μs. However, the major technological barrier that prohibit...

A uniform lying helix (ULH) alignment of cholesteric liquid crystals (LCs) is obtained using a solvent evaporation technique. The solvent evaporation method allows for the spontaneous formation of a virtually defect-free alignment, even in the absence of an external electric field. A small amount of solvent diffuses into the LC and changes its phase into isotropic state where the individual LC molecules are more mobile. As the solvent diffuses out of the LC and consequently evaporates, additi...

Two‐photon laser writing is a powerful technique for creating intricate, high resolution features in polymerizable materials. Here, using a single‐step process to microfabricate polymer inclusions, the ability to generate read‐on‐demand images and identification codes in a liquid crystal (LC) device is demonstrated. These micrometer‐sized polymer features are encoded directly into LC devices using direct laser writing, which locks‐in the local molecular orientation at the moment of fabricatio...

Direct Laser Writing (DLW) by two-photon photopolymerization (TPP) enables the fabrication of micron-scale polymeric structures in soft matter systems. The technique has implications in a broad range of optics and photonics; in particular fast-switching liquid crystal (LC) modes for the development of next generation display technologies. In this paper, we report two different methodologies using our TPP-based fabrication technique. Two explicit examples are provided of voltage-dependent LC d...

Direct laser writing is a powerful nonlinear fabrication technique that provides high intensities in the focal plane of a sample to engineer multidimensional structures with submicron feature sizes. Dielectrically and optically anisotropic soft matter is of particular interest when considering a host medium in which exotic topological characteristics may be generated. In this manuscript, we adopt a novel approach for direct laser writing of polymeric structures, whereby the photo-sensitive re...

A new method has been established for the measurement of the sum of the flexoelectric coefficients e1+e3 in liquid crystals by exploiting the properties of highly ionic materials in order to screen out the internal bias due to the different surface alignment polarities in a Hybrid Aligned Nematic (HAN) liquid crystal device. It has been shown that responses to pulses are independent of the external offset of a signal applied to a HAN device filled with a highly ionic material. Driving the dev...

Hybrid Aligned Nematic (HAN) devices filled with highly ionic liquid crystal materials screen out the internal bias due to surface polarization, making it possible to determine the flexoelectric sum, e1 + e3. A transient change is observed in the device response due to differing polarities of an external offset applied to an AC signal, with a time constant similar to the characteristic ion relaxation time in the material. Assuming ions screen out the internal bias, data-theory fits in the low...