Influence of electrical field on light propagation in microstructured liquid crystal fibers.

Microstructured optical fibers have ability to change their optical properties through inserting different materials into their holes. Filling the microstructured fibers with liquid crystals opens up a possibility of dynamic switching between different guiding mechanisms. In this paper we present the influence of electrical field on propagation properties of microstructured photonic crystal fibers filled with either low or highly birefringent nematic liquid crystals. Depending on the liquid crystal material introduced into the micro holes different propagation mechanism controlled by external electric field have been observed. This creates great potential in fiber optic sensing and optical processing application.

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