Recent developments in polymer stabilised liquid crystals

Polymer stabilised liquid crystals describe systems in which a polymer network is formed within an anisotropic liquid crystal matrix. During the polymerisation process a bi-continuous system is formed, where a continuous polymer network permeates a continuous liquid crystal phase. The order and structure of the liquid crystal phase are transferred onto the polymer network, which thus mechanically stabilises the phase it was formed in. Such systems have attracted increasing interest over the last 15 years, as they are serious candidates in the development of electronic paper, but also for the mechanical stabilisation of smectic ferroelectric liquid crystals, which exhibit some very superior electro-optic properties over their nematic counterparts found in most common LCDs today. In the last few years some remarkable developments in the field of polymer stabilised liquid crystals took place, some of more academic interest, but others certainly also of interest for future display and optical component applications. Some examples of both will be discussed.