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We demonstrate a fringe-field switching nematic liquid crystal with electro-optical behavior modulated by both bulk and surface polymer stabilization. The polymer is formed by ultraviolet irradiation-induced phase separation of various amounts of a reactive monomer in the planar-aligned nematic liquid crystal. Simulation is carried out to verify the effect of anchoring energy. Experimental evidence validates the effect of monomer concentration on transmittance-voltage and response times curves of fringe-field switching cells. The polymer-stabilized alignment with a higher polymer concentration escalates the interaction between the liquid crystal and the polymer structure and increases the surface anchoring energy. The polymer stabilization also improves the dynamic response times of liquid crystal. The enabling polymer-stabilized alignment technique has excellent electro-optical properties such as a very good dark state, high optical contrast, and fast rise and decay times that may lead to development of a wide range of applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We demonstrate a fast switching polymer-stabilized fringe-field switching (PS-FFS) liquid crystal mode device with plannar alignment using an ultraviolet-curable reactive mesogen. The polymer stabilization increases the azimuthal anchoring energy and improves the dynamic response. Transmission-voltage curves and microscopic images show the PS-FFS cell can keep a comparable high contrast ratio. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the effect of the polymerized surfaces on the anchoring energy and pre-tilt angle of liquid crystal alignment. Ultraviolet light-illuminated cell initiates polymerization and produces sub-micron sized polymer protrusions. Experimental evidences reveal the relation between the curing conditions and the resulted pre-tilt angle and anchoring energy of cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]