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Photo-Induced Surface Alignment Of Nematic Liquid Crystals On Polyamide-Imide Layers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

David C. Rich
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
Enid K. Sichel
Affiliation:
Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
Peggy Cebet
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Tufts University, Medford, MA 02155
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Abstract

A technique for producing surface-induced liquid crystal nematic alignment is presented. The alignment film is a simple, inexpensive polyamide-imide, which is treated with linearly polarized short wavelength ultraviolet radiation (λ = 254 nm). The alignment performance of UV-aligned layers is shown by optical transmission of the liquid crystal cells to be comparable to that of brushed layers. Strong alignment is produced within minutes of UV exposure and is maintained with long exposures.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1996

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References

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