Lateral electrode smectic liquid crystal devices
First Claim
1. A tilted layer liquid crystal cell for light modulation comprising:
- a pair of substrates positioned with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls;
a smectic liquid crystal with rotatable optic axis disposed between said cell walls, the layers of said liquid crystal at an oblique angle, Θ
, to said cell walls; and
a means for applying an electric field parallel to said cell walls through said liquid crystal to rotate said optic axis of said liquid crystal;
wherein the light is transmitted through said liquid crystal.
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Abstract
This invention provides smectic liquid crystal cells with lateral electrodes. The effective change in refractive index with field-induced tilting of the liquid crystal molecules is increased by providing an angle between the direction of propagation of light and the direction of the molecular directors at zero applied field. For homeotropically aligned liquid crystals this is accomplished by inclining the incident light beam at an oblique angle to the device surface. For tilted layer cells the liquid crystal layers are tilted and the light can impinge at normal incidence. This invention further provides Fabry-Perot filters utilizing lateral electrode liquid crystal cells.
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Citations
86 Claims
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1. A tilted layer liquid crystal cell for light modulation comprising:
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a pair of substrates positioned with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls; a smectic liquid crystal with rotatable optic axis disposed between said cell walls, the layers of said liquid crystal at an oblique angle, Θ
, to said cell walls; anda means for applying an electric field parallel to said cell walls through said liquid crystal to rotate said optic axis of said liquid crystal; wherein the light is transmitted through said liquid crystal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A Fabry-Perot modulator for light comprising:
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a first liquid crystal cell comprising a pair of substrates with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls, a smectic liquid crystal disposed between said cell walls, and a means for applying an electric field parallel to said cell walls through said liquid crystal; and a front and a back reflective means positioned in series with and on either side of said liquid crystal to form a Fabry-Perot cavity. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
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42. A prism-coupled modulator for light comprising:
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a first and a second substrate positioned with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls; a smectic liquid crystal with rotatable optic axis disposed between said cell walls; a means for applying an electric field parallel to said cell walls through said liquid crystal to rotate said optic axis of said liquid crystal; and an input prism for receiving said light and for optically coupling the received light with said first substrate at an angle oblique to said first substrate, wherein said received light is transmitted through said liquid crystal. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49)
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50. A series polarization independent modulator of light comprising:
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a first smectic liquid crystal cell for variably retarding a first polarization of light; and a second smectic liquid crystal cell, positioned in series with said first cell, for variably retarding a second polarization of light, said second polarization orthogonal to said first linear polarization; wherein each of said liquid crystal cells comprises a pair of substrates with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls, a smectic liquid crystal layer with rotatable optic axis disposed between said cell walls, and a means for applying an electric field parallel to said cell walls through said liquid crystal layer; and wherein said electric field in said first liquid crystal cell is orthogonal to said electric field in said second liquid crystal cell. - View Dependent Claims (51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57)
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58. A parallel polarization diversity modulator for light comprising:
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a means for spatially dividing said light into a first and a second component of orthogonal polarization; a first liquid crystal cell optically coupled with said first component of light; a second liquid crystal cell optically coupled with said second component of light; and a means for recombining said first and said second component of light; each of said first and second liquid crystal cells comprising a pair of substrates with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls, a smectic liquid crystal disposed between said cell walls, and a means for applying an electric field parallel to said cell walls through said liquid crystal; and wherein said electric field in said first liquid crystal cell is orthogonal to said electric field in said second liquid crystal cell. - View Dependent Claims (59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70)
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- 71. An edge-entering liquid crystal modulator for light comprising a pair of substrates with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls, a smectic liquid crystal disposed between said cell walls, and a means for applying an electric field to said liquid crystal, wherein said modulator is adapted to receive light incident on the edge of said modulator between said substrates, and wherein the application of said electric field causes phase modulation of light transmitted through said modulator.
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81. A method of phase modulation of linearly polarized light comprising the steps of:
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providing a liquid crystal cell comprising; a pair of substrates positioned with opposing surfaces spaced apart to form cell walls; a homeotropically aligned smectic liquid crystal with rotatable optic axis disposed between said opposing surfaces, said liquid crystal having a plane of electric field-induced rotation; and a means for applying an electric field parallel,to said opposing surfaces across said liquid crystal to rotate said optic axis of said liquid crystal; orienting said cell to receive the incident light with the normal to said substrates at an angle 8 to the propagation vector of said incident light and with said plane of rotation of said liquid crystal parallel to the polarization of said incident light; and applying an electric field across said liquid crystal, whereby the phase of said incident light is modulated. - View Dependent Claims (82, 83, 84, 85, 86)
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Specification