Realignment of ferroelectric nematic by photoinduced electric field
Liquid crystal displays (LCDs) use thin pixels of a paraelectric nematic, confined between two glass plates with transparent indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. A voltage applied to the electrodes realigns the molecules, changing optical appearance of the pixel. Here, we demonstrate that a similar molecular realignment can be triggered by a low-power light irradiation when the paraelectric nematic in the cell with ITO electrodes is replaced with a ferroelectric nematic (N F ). Irradiation creates an intrinsic electric field that is strong enough to realign the N F but too weak to affect the paraelectric nematic. The extraordinary sensitivity of the ITO/N F pair to light irradiation creates a platform for optical control of ferroelectric polarization and applications in photonics, sensing, smart windows, and beyond.
Authors
- Oleg D. Lavrentovich (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0128-0708)
- Mykola Kravets (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7751-3643)
- Sergij V. Shiyanovskii (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0394-1183)
- V. G. Nazarenko (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0602-6116)
- Sathyanarayana Paladugu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4176-2872)
- Bijaya Basnet (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4216-9897)
- O. Kurochkin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1636-4488)
- Volodymyr Sashuk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5907-8596)
- Ruslan Kravchuk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7858-0509)
Institutions
- National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (UA)
- Kent State University (US)
- Institute of Physical Chemistry (PL)
- Institute of Physics (UA)
- Polish Academy of Sciences (PL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Science Advances
- Published
- 2026-10-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aei1336
- Primary Topic
- Liquid Crystal Research Advancements
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- National Research Foundation of Ukraine
- North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- National Academy of Sciences
- Division of Materials Research