Fast electro-optical effect in polymer-stabilized blue phases

Key challenges in achieving higher-quality liquid crystal displays for future generations are developing new liquid crystal materials with faster electro-optical response and simplifying the fabrication process of devices. Blue phases1-4, kinds of liquid crystal phases, have two major advantages over commonly used nematic phases. First, the response is much faster5-8. Second, the zero-electric field state is optically isotropic unlike nematic phases, that is, no surface treatment (no rubbing) is necessary, leading to a simplification of the fabrication process. One of the problems of blue phases that the available temperature range is very narrow has been overcome by our recent achievement, the polymer-stabilized blue phases9,10. Here we show that the polymer-stabilized blue phases surmount another problem that the blue phase is very fragile to an electric field. We also demonstrate the sufficiently large electric field-induced birefringence and the micro-second response of the polymer-stabilized blue phases without any surface treatment.