Liquid Crystals in Photonics II

A special issue of Photonics (ISSN 2304-6732).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 January 2025 | Viewed by 1720

Special Issue Editors

1. The College of Optics and Photonics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA
2. Apple Inc., Cupertino, CA, USA
Interests: AR/VR; photonics

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Guest Editor
1. The College of Optics and Photonics, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL, USA 2. Applied Materials, CA, USA
Interests: novel liquid crystal devices; optical system design; augmented reality and virtual reality displays
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Guest Editor
School of Physics, Henan Normal University, Henan, China
Interests: new intelligent display technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality; liquid crystal holographic element

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Liquid crystals are a state of matter exhibiting both fluid- and solid-like properties. They are unique in that they have both long-range order, meaning that the molecules are aligned in a specific orientation, and short-range disorder, indicating a random arrangement of the molecules within each orientation. This combination of order and disorder leads to distinctive optical properties that make liquid crystals useful for a range of photonic applications.

A well-known application of liquid crystals is in liquid crystal displays (LCDs), where they are used to produce colors and images in electronic devices, such as smartphones, televisions, and computers. In an LCD, an electric current is applied to the liquid crystal molecules, causing them to align and produce a specific color or image. The widespread use of LCDs in modern technology has made liquid crystals a major contributor to the field of liquid crystal photonics. In addition to LCDs, liquid crystals have been used for various other photonic applications. For example, they have been integrated into optical communication systems, where they can be used as tunable filters to control the wavelength of light. They have also been employed as sensors, where changes in the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules can be used to detect various physical and chemical parameters, as well as in laser technology, where they can be used to control the polarization and direction of laser beams.

Overall, liquid crystal photonics is a rapidly growing and evolving area of research, with novel applications and advancements continuously being developed. The unique optical properties of liquid crystals, combined with their versatility and ease of integration into various photonic systems, make them a valuable tool for researchers and engineers in the field of photonics.

Several key topics in the field of liquid crystals in photonics include the following:

  • Liquid crystal displays and their technological advancements;
  • Liquid crystal-based optical communication systems;
  • Liquid crystal-related AR/VR technologies;
  • Liquid crystal sensors and their applications in different fields;
  • Liquid crystal laser technology and its potential applications;
  • Properties of liquid crystals and their impact on photonic applications;
  • Theoretical and computational studies of liquid crystals in photonics.

Dr. Qian Yang
Dr. Yannanqi Li
Dr. Tiegang Lin
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • liquid crystals
  • photonics
  • AR/VR
  • LCD
  • optical communication
  • sensors
  • laser technology
  • electronic devices
  • computational optics

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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6 pages, 1840 KiB  
Brief Report
Compact and High-Efficiency Liquid-Crystal-on-Silicon for Augmented Reality Displays
by Zhenyi Luo, Yuqiang Ding, Fenglin Peng, Ziqian He, Yun Wang and Shin-Tson Wu
Photonics 2024, 11(7), 669; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics11070669 - 17 Jul 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1178
Abstract
Compact and high efficiency microdisplays are essential for lightweight augmented reality (AR) glasses to ensure longtime wearing comfort. Liquid-crystal-on-silicon (LCoS) is a promising candidate because of its high-resolution density, high brightness, and low cost. However, its bulky illumination system with a polarizing beam [...] Read more.
Compact and high efficiency microdisplays are essential for lightweight augmented reality (AR) glasses to ensure longtime wearing comfort. Liquid-crystal-on-silicon (LCoS) is a promising candidate because of its high-resolution density, high brightness, and low cost. However, its bulky illumination system with a polarizing beam splitter (PBS) cube remains an urgent issue to be overcome. To reduce the volume of the LCoS illumination system, here, we propose a compact structure with four thin PBS cuboids. Through simulations, the optical efficiency of 36.7% for an unpolarized input light can be achieved while maintaining reasonably good spatial uniformity. Such a novel design is expected to have a significant impact on future compact and lightweight AR glasses. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Liquid Crystals in Photonics II)
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