AI Article Synopsis
- Researchers created microtextured substrates with horizontal and vertical patterns that influence the alignment of liquid crystals (LC).
- As the spacing of these patterns decreased to around 0.8 micrometers, the LC alignment shifted from uneven to a uniform state with a significant pretilt of about 40 degrees.
- This study suggests a balance between liquid crystal orientation energy and surface anchoring energy, and proposes a model that aligns well with experimental results, potentially leading to new methods for customizing substrates for LC applications.
Article Abstract
A uniform alignment of liquid crystal (LC) with finite pretilt was observed on microtextured substrates that were lithographically fabricated with alternating horizontal and vertical corrugations. As the period of alternation was decreased toward 0.8 microm, the nematic LC alignment on these substrates changed from inhomogeneous in plane, copying the substrate corrugations, to a uniform configuration with a large pretilt of approximately 40 degrees. This transition is pertinent to a frustrated boundary wherein a lowering in the LC elastic energy due to spatial variation in the LC orientation compromises an increase in the surface anchoring energy. A model based on this idea demonstrates good agreement with the experiment. This result may open up a new arena for tailoring substrate characteristics for LC alignment.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.91.215501 | DOI Listing |
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