Rigid Formation of Aligned Polymer Fiber Network in Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal

A rigid polymer fiber network for fastening two substrates and anchoring a ferroelectric liquid crystal alignment was formed, for the first time, by rapidly polymerizing aligned high-concentration acrylate monomers. The µm-size polymer fibers segregated from a nematic solution of the monomers and the ferroelectric liquid crystal under high temperature and strong ultraviolet light irradiation are oriented in the rubbing direction of the alignment layers. The free-standing composite film having a concentration of the polymer of 20 wt% exhibited a fast response time of 300 µs, a high contrast ratio of more than 100:1, and grayscale capability. It is applicable to anti-shock display devices.