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US 8,797,499 B2Granted
Liquid crystal lens or beam steering device comprising an alignment layer with a rubbed foundation layer and an ordered surface layer that aligns liquid crystal molecules in a zero field ground state
AssigneeLensvector Inc.
InventorTigran Galstian
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A liquid crystal lens or beam steering device is made by programming alignment surfaces of the LC cell walls using a programming field to align the alignment surface molecules before fixing them. By setting the desired pre-tilt, the lens can operate in the absence of the control field, and power consumption by the control field can be reduced.
Claims25
A liquid crystal acting as a lens or a beam steering device comprising:
- a pair of cell walls defining a cavity, the cavity being filled with liquid crystal molecules, at least one of the cell walls having an alignment layer including a rubbed foundation layer and an ordered surface layer that interacts with the liquid crystal molecules to cause alignment of the liquid crystal molecules in a zero field ground state in a predetermined director orientation;
- the ordered surface layer is formed, over said foundation layer, with liquid crystal layer molecules aligned using a programming field without mechanical rubbing,
- said optical device including one of:
- said cell walls being essentially planar and parallel, a spatially non-uniform alignment of said surface layer molecules on the surface of said ordered surface layer, and the spatially non-uniform alignment of said molecules providing for a lens or a beam steering device in a zero field ground state;
- said cell walls being not parallel to one another, and a spatially uniform alignment of said surface layer molecules on the non-planar surface of said ordered surface layer;
- and
- said cell walls are not parallel to one another, a spatially uniform alignment of said surface layer molecules on the surface of said ordered surface layer on said two cell walls that are planar and non-parallel, and said optical device being a beam steering device.
4 more elements
A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal lens or beam steering device, comprising:
- providing a pair of cells walls defining a cavity, the cavity being filled with liquid crystal molecules, at least one of the cell walls having an alignment layer including a rubbed foundation layer and an ordered surface layer;
- using a programming field to form the ordered surface layer with aligned molecules, wherein said aligned molecules of said ordered surface layer are ordered and stabilized without mechanical rubbing using at least one of an external programming field and a control electrical field applied between a pair of device control electrodes across the cell, and when in contact with liquid crystal molecules of said cell said aligned molecules of said ordered surface layer cause alignment of the liquid crystal molecules in a zero control field ground state in a predetermined director orientation,
- wherein said ordered surface layer is programmed while in contact with the liquid crystal molecules, said programming field being used to align said liquid crystal molecules that in turn cause alignment of molecules of said ordered surface prior to curing.
A liquid crystal acting as a lens or a beam steering device comprising:
- a pair of cell walls defining a cavity, the cavity being filled for operation with nematic liquid crystal molecules, at least one of the cell walls having an alignment layer including a rubbed foundation layer and an ordered surface layer that interacts with the liquid crystal molecules to cause alignment of the liquid crystal molecules in a zero field ground state in a predetermined pre-tilt director orientation;
- wherein the ordered surface layer is formed, over said foundation layer, with alignment liquid crystal molecules aligned using an external programming field without mechanical rubbing, said external programming field being at least one of an electric, magnetic and acoustic field.
A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal lens or beam steering device, comprising:
- using an external programming field to form an alignment layer on at least one wall of a cell cavity, said alignment layer having a rubbed foundation layer and an ordered surface layer over said foundation layer, said ordered surface layer having aligned molecules, said aligned molecules being ordered and stabilized using said external programming field without mechanical rubbing, said programming field being at least one of an electric, magnetic and acoustic field, and
- filling said cell cavity for operation with nematic liquid crystal molecules, when in contact with said liquid crystal molecules said aligned molecules of said ordered surface layer causing alignment of the liquid crystal molecules in a zero control field ground state in a predetermined pre-tilt director orientation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.