Effects of Polymer Network with Electric Field to the Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal Molecular Alignments

The effects of polymer networks with electric field application to the electro-optic characteristics of ferroelectric liquid crystal devices have been studied. The polymer networks formed in SmC* phase are anisotropic and fibrils-like. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and optical microscopy were used to study the polymer networks and the stabilized panels. The electro-optic characteristics of cells were also measured. The experimental results show that presence of anisotropic polymer networks have great effects on the FLC molecules orientation and electro-optic characteristics. The E-O curve of the device is like oVo shape when the monomer concentration is 4%, so it is easier to get gray scales than SSFLC in devices.