Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Continuous grey-scale image storage using optically aligned nematic liquid crystals

  • Letter
  • Published:

From Nature

View current issue Submit your manuscript

Abstract

LIQUID crystals have been widely used in flat-panel-display applications for many years. But attempts to use liquid crystals as optical data-storage media1 have met with limited success, owing to both the difficulties of encoding grey-scale images2 and the complexity of writing and rewriting schemes3,4. Fundamental to all liquid-crystal-based optical devices is the control of average molecular orientation over macroscopic length scales, and it has recently been shown that polarized light can be used to induce such alignment with high spatial resolution5á-12. Here we show that a similar strategy can be used to record high-resolution, erasable, continuous grey-scale images. This approach shows potential for low-cost, high-density optical data-storage applications.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Marchant, A. B. Optical Recording: A Technical Overview (Addison-Wesley, Reading. MA, 1990).

    Google Scholar 

  2. Coates, D. in Thermotropic Liquid Crystals (ed. Gray, G. W.) 99–119 (Wiley, Chichester, 1987).

    Google Scholar 

  3. Anderle, K., Birenheide, R., Werner, M. J. A. & Wendorff, J. H. Liq. Cryst. 9, 691–699 (1991).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Eich, M., Wendorff, J. H., Reck, B. & Ringsdorf, H. Makromolek. Chem. Rapid Commun. 8, 59–63 (1987).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Gibbons, W. M., Shannon, P. J., Sun, S. T. & Swetlin, B. J. Nature 351, 49–50 (1991).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Sun, S. T., Gibbons, W. M. & Shannon, P. J. Liq. Cryst. 12, 869–874 (1992).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Shannon, P. J., Gibbons, W. M. & Sun, S. T. Nature 368, 532–533 (1994).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Gibbons, W. M., Shannon, P. J. & Sun, S. T. Molec. Cryst. liq. Cryst. 251, 191–208 (1994).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Gibbons, W. M. & Sun, S. T. Appl. Phys. Lett. 65, 2542–2544 (1994).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Schadt, M., Schmitt, K., Kozinkov, V. & Chigrinov, V. Jap. J. appl. Phys. 31, 2155–2164 (1992).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Ichimura, K., Hayashi, Y., Akiyama, H., Ikeda, T. & Ishizuki, N. Appl. Phys. Lett. 63, 449–451 (1993).

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Limura, Y., Kusano, J., Kobayashi, S., Aoyagi, Y. & Sugano, T. Jap. J. appl. Phys. 32, L93–L96 (1993).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Cognard, J. Molec. Cryst. liq. Cryst. 51, 1–77 (1982).

    Google Scholar 

  14. Jones, C. & Day, S. Nature 351, 15 (1991).

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  15. Akiyama, H., Kudo, K. & Ichimura, K. Macromolec. Rapid Commun. 16, 35–41 (1995).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Ichimura, K., Hayashi, Y. & Ishizuki, N. Chemy Lett. 1063–1066 (1992).

  17. Jacobson, R. E. in Photopolymerization and Photoimaging Science and Technology (ed. Allen, N. S.) 149–186 (Elsevier, London, 1989).

    Book  Google Scholar 

  18. Anon, Cond. Matter News 4 (May/June), 1 (1995).

  19. DeGennes, P. G. & Prost, J. The Physics of Liquid Crystals 268–269 (Clarendon, Oxford, 1993).

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Elsicon Unit, Alliant Techsystems, Research Center, 500 Hercules Road, Wilmington, Delaware, 19808-1599, USA

    W. M. Gibbons, P. J. Shannon & S. T. Sun

  2. Liquid Crystal Institute, Kent State University, Kent, Ohio, 44242, USA

    T. Kosa & P. Palffy-Muhoray

Authors
  1. W. M. Gibbons
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. T. Kosa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. P. Palffy-Muhoray
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. P. J. Shannon
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. S. T. Sun
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gibbons, W., Kosa, T., Palffy-Muhoray, P. et al. Continuous grey-scale image storage using optically aligned nematic liquid crystals. Nature 377, 43–46 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1038/377043a0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/377043a0

  • Springer Nature Limited

This article is cited by

Search

Navigation