Related papers: Tunable all-optical switching in periodic structur…
Fr\'eedericksz transitions in nematic liquid crystals are re-examined with a focus on differences between systems with magnetic fields and those with electric fields. A magnetic field can be treated as uniform in a liquid-crystal medium;…
Field theories predict that phase transitions sequentially breaking continuous and discrete symmetries can generate hybrid topological structures in which defects of different dimensionalities merge. We report experimental and numerical…
Metasurfaces have been extensively engineered to produce a wide range of optical phenomena, allowing unprecedented control over the propagation of light. However, they are generally designed as single-purpose devices without a modifiable…
Elliptic shear applied to a homeotropically oriented nematic above the electric bend Freedericks transition (FT) generates slow precession of the director. The character of the accompanying nonlinear waves changes from diffusive phase waves…
The propagation of the quantum states of light in dispersive and anisotropic media is a fundamental problem in quantum optics. We present a unified theoretical framework for the propagation of the quantum states of light in…
Chiral nematic liquid crystals exhibit both a helical planar ground state with uniform twist and a metastable defect-rich focal conic texture, and can be switched between the two microstructures via application of transient voltage pulses.…
Tunable dielectric meta-surface nanostructures offer incredible performance in optical application due to their extraordinary tunability of the polarization and engineering the dispersion of light with low loss in infrared range. In this…
Optical properties of a one-dimensional photonic structure consisting of Kerr-type nonlinear and magnetic layers under the action of an external static magnetic field in the Faraday geometry are investigated. The structure is a periodic…
In this work, we report the first demonstration of a solution processable, optically switchable 1D photonic crystal by implementing phototunable doped metal oxide nanocrystals. The resulting device structure shows bi-photonic response with…
Electric field-induced splay of molecular orientation, called the Fr\'eedericksz transition, is a fundamental electro-optic phenomenon in nonpolar nematic liquid crystals. In a ferroelectric nematic NF with a spontaneous electric…
We investigate the switching dynamics of multistable nematic liquid crystal devices. In particular we identify a remarkably simple 2-dimensional (2D) device which exploits hybrid alignment at the surfaces to yield a bistable response. We…
We create a one-dimensional photonic crystal with strong polarization dependence and tunable by an applied electric field. We accomplish this in a planar microcavity by embedding a cholesteric liquid crystal (LC), which spontaneously forms…
We review the recent developments in the field of photonic lattices emphasizing their unique properties for controlling linear and nonlinear propagation of light. We draw some important links between optical lattices and photonic crystals…
A localized defect mode in a photonic-layered structure develops nodal points. Placing a thin metallic layer at such a nodal point results in the phenomenon of induced transparency. We demonstrate that if this nodal point is not a point of…
The transition from a nematic to an isotropic state in a self-closing spherical liquid crystal shell with tangential alignment is a stimulating phenomenon to investigate, as the topology dictates that the shell exhibits local isotropic…
Disclinations lines play a key role in many physical processes, from the fracture of materials to the formation of the early universe. Achieving versatile control over disclinations is key to developing novel electro-optical devices,…
The properties of liquid crystals can be modelled using an order parameter which describes the variability of the local orientation of rod-like molecules. Defects in the director field can arise due to external factors such as applied…
Motile liquid crystal (LC) colloids show peculiar behavior due to the high sensitivity to external stimuli driven by the LC elastic and surface effects. However, few studies focus on harnessing the LC phase transitions to propel colloidal…
Recent experimental observations have suggested that topological defects can facilitate the creation of sharp features in developing embryos. Whereas these observations echo established knowledge about the interplay between geometry and…
We propose a theoretical framework to dynamically control the degree of polarization of light by using the superposition of incoherent orthogonally polarized beams in a Mach-Zehnder interferometer incorporating a twisted nematic liquid…