Thermally addressed and erasable displays by polymer‐dispersed nematic liquid crystals with memory properties

— A new type of thermally addressed display device using polymer-dispersed nematic liquid-crystal (PDLC) films with highly transparent memory states is described. Its electro-optical and thermo-optical properties were studied and its capabilities for thermal addressing were demonstrated. Writing and local erasing are performed by a YAG laser beam in “white-on-black” and “black-on-white” modes. Thermal images are also successfully written by a thermal printer head onto a flexible PDLC film.