Abstract
We show that photovoltaic fields are capable of efficiently reorienting liquid crystals, leading to new concepts of optically addressable light modulators. Using an arrangement consisting of a liquid-crystal layer between photovoltaic substrates, we observed spatial filtering due to self-phase modulation in a planar-oriented cell and nonlinear transmission between crossed polarizers in a twist-oriented cell. These processes do not require an external electric field. The substrates are arranged such that light propagates along the axis in each substrate, allowing a secondary process of power transfer to occur through contradirectional photorefractive two-beam coupling.
© 2006 Optical Society of America
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