[26a-E205-1~9] 3.2 Equipment optics and materials

△ [26a-E205-7] Photo-induced molecular reorientation of dye-doped liquid crystals containing inorganic nanorods

〇(DC)JoseCarlos Mejia¹, Kohsuke Matsumoto¹, Shoichi Kubo¹, Atsushi Shishido¹ (1.Lab. for Chem. & Life Sci., Tokyo Tech)

Keywords:Liquid crystal, Nonlinear optical effect, ZnO nanorods

Liquid crystals attract significant attention as nonlinear optical materials due to their high refractive index and ability to induce molecular reorientation at low light intensities. We have previously reported that oligothiophene-dye-doped liquid crystals stabilized with a polymer can initiate their molecular reorientation at a relatively lower light intensity. Recently, a new inorganic nanorod material grafted with a nematic liquid-crystalline polymer was established with excellent miscibility with nematic liquid crystal molecules. Dopants of inorganic nanorods in the liquid crystal host are expected to enhance the nonlinear optical properties of liquid crystals; thus, enabling a decrease in threshold intensity to initiate molecular reorientation of liquid crystal molecules. In this study, the molecular reorientation behavior of oligothiophene-dye-doped liquid crystals containing polymer-grafted nanorods was investigated by irradiating with a polarized laser beam at different light intensities.