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The present study focuses on the effect of doping KH560-modified cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) on the electro-optical characteristics of polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs). PDLC films were fabricated through the polymerization-initiated phase separation (PIPS) process and doped with CNC nanoparticles at various concentrations. At low concentrations, the CNCs at the interface, by virtue of their unique chiral characteristics, induce an orderly arrangement of liquid crystal molecules. Meanwhile, the interaction between the film's fiber structure and the liquid crystal droplets brings about an augmentation in the arrangement efficiency. The excellent dispersion of CNCs diminishes the random alignment of liquid crystal molecules and mitigates light scattering. Additionally, it aids in the deflection of the liquid crystal director, facilitating the lubrication of the liquid crystals' movement. It is remarkable that within the range of relatively lower CNCs doping concentrations, specifically from 0.005 wt% to 0.05 wt%, the PDLC films exhibit lower threshold and saturation voltages, faster response, enhanced viewing angle performance and higher contrast.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/molecules30153273 | DOI Listing |
Nat Commun
September 2025
Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
The phase transformation of single-element systems is a fundamental natural process with broad implications, yet many aspects remain puzzling despite their simplicity. For instance, transition metals, Tantalum (Ta) and Zirconium (Zr), commonly form body-centred cubic crystals when supercooled. However, according to large-scale computer simulations, their crystallisation rates can differ by over 100 times.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLight Sci Appl
September 2025
National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Key Laboratory of Intelligent Optical Sensing and Manipulation, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Nanjing University, 210023, Nanjing, China.
Planar optical elements incorporating space-varying Pancharatnam-Berry phase have revolutionized the manipulation of light fields by enabling continuous control over amplitude, phase, and polarization. While previous research focusing on linear functionalities using apolar liquid crystals (LCs) has attracted much attention, extending this concept to the nonlinear regime offers unprecedented opportunities for advanced optical processing. Here, we demonstrate the reconfigurable nonlinear Pancharatnam-Berry LC diffractive optics in photopatterned ion-doped ferroelectric nematics.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhys Rev Lett
August 2025
McMaster University, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4M1, Canada.
Magnetic heat capacity measurements of a high-quality single crystal of the dipole-octupole pyrochlore Ce_{2}Hf_{2}O_{7} down to a temperature of T=0.02 K are reported. These show a two-peaked structure, with a Schottky-like peak at T_{1}∼0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhys Rev Lett
August 2025
European Laboratory for Non Linear Spectroscopy (LENS), Istituto Nazionale di Ottica, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR-INO), via Nello Carrara 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy and , via Nello Carrara 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Italy.
Single crystal x-ray diffraction measurements have been carried out on epsilon oxygen up to 30 GPa to examine the behavior of the constituent (O_{2})_{4} units. An isostructural phase transition is evidenced by lattice parameter and intracluster (O_{8}) distance discontinuities and clear changes in the equation of state at 18.1±0.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAdv Mater
September 2025
School of Biomedical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, P. R. China.
Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) are important soft actuators that show strong promise in many fields where traditional rigid actuators or robotics are impractical. However, their real-world applications are lacking primarily due to inadequate actuation performance and complicated fabrication processes. Here, a novel design is reported that significantly enhances actuation performance while simplifying the fabrication process.
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