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Photorefractive Smectic Mesophases

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Photorefractive Organic Materials and Applications

Part of the book series: Springer Series in Materials Science ((SSMATERIALS,volume 240))

Abstract

The orientational contribution pointed out the major contribution of the molecular first order susceptibility to the index modulation in organic photorefractive materials. This discovery leads the way to the use of liquid crystals as PR materials due to their spontaneous birefringence and to the many possible electric field-induced reorientational effects. In this chapter, we are focusing on the structure and electro-optic properties of the smectic phases. After a brief introduction to the different phases (A and C), we will discuss the specific properties each phase contribute to in a photorefractive liquid crystal system. The theory of the molecular alignment into the photo-generated space-charge field is detailed incorporating the particularities due to liquid crystal phases and light polarization. Some specific cases are analyzed in detail such as the application of an AC field and the use of bistable devices which bring both long-term stability and nondestructive readout.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Program (FP7 2007-2013) through the Eliotropo (PON03PE_00092_2) Project and by MIUR, through PRIN 2012 (Project 2012JHFYMC).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CNR-Nanotec, SS di Rende, Rende, 87036, Italy

    Roberto Termine

  2. Dipartimento di Fisica, Università della Calabria, Rende, 87036, Italy

    Attilio Golemme

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  1. Roberto Termine
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  2. Attilio Golemme
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Correspondence to Roberto Termine .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. College of Optical Sciences, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    Pierre-Alexandre Blanche

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Termine, R., Golemme, A. (2016). Photorefractive Smectic Mesophases. In: Blanche, PA. (eds) Photorefractive Organic Materials and Applications. Springer Series in Materials Science, vol 240. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29334-9_5

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