Luminescent Liquid Crystals for Multidimensional Active Emission Control
ABSTRACT Luminescent liquid crystals (LLCs) merge the self‐organization of liquid crystals (LCs) with the emissive properties of luminophores, offering a versatile route toward active light manipulation. The construction of LLCs relies on two essential aspects: achieving compatibility between external emissive units and LC phases, and developing multiscale assembly strategies from molecular design to macroscopic alignment. These hybrid systems further benefit from multi‐stimuli responsiveness, as both the LC host and the emissive components can react to external fields. Their combination produces synergistic optical responses, such as dynamic emission modulation and reversible switching, which establish the foundation for active photonic regulation. Building upon this, LLCs enable the expansion of light control beyond conventional parameters of amplitude, phase, and polarization, toward new emission‐related dimensions including polarization state, lifetime, and excitation dynamics. This transition marks a conceptual leap from passive optical modulation to active emission control. Such unique capabilities inspire emerging applications in multidimensional information encryption, flexible displays, advanced sensing, and optical communications. In this review, we outline these research directions, discuss critical challenges, and highlight future opportunities for LLCs as a platform for multidimensional and intelligent photonics.
Authors
- Z D Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-3167-2251)
- Yanqing Lu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6151-8557)
- Lingling Ma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0001-9524)
- Yang Wei
- Chao Chen
- Ze‐Yu Wang
- Zhuo‐Rui Su
Institutions
- Nanjing Agricultural University (CN)
- Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine (CN)
- Nanjing Tech University (CN)
- Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Laser & Photonics Review
- Published
- 2026-06-26
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/lpor.71467
- Primary Topic
- Liquid Crystal Research Advancements
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province
- National Key Research and Development Program of China
- Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities