Liquid crystals in waveguides for tuning and sensing

Abstract

The orientation of liquid crystal in the neighborhood of an optical waveguide determines the propagation speed and the losses in the waveguide. This principle can be used for tuning the resonance frequency of a ring resonator or for sensing the presence of molecules at the interface between water and liquid crystal. In this work, experimental evidence and qualitative explanations are provided for these two cases. © 2011 Photonics Society of Poland.