Preparation and electro-optical behaviors of polymer stabilized liquid crystal cells with chiral matrices derived from (-)-camphor

Novel chiral monomers derived from (-)-camphor and difunctional monomers with biphenyl segments were synthesized. The molecular structures were identified using FTIR, NMR, and elemental analyses. Surface pretreated polymer stabilized cholesteric texture (PSCT) cells with various chiral nematic components were prepared. According to theory, they are kind of reversed mode PSCT cells. The helical twisting power (HTP) and pitches of the PSCT cells were evaluated. The polarized optical microscopic (POM) textures and the dependence of the optical properties on the applied voltage of the PSCT cells were investigated. The reflection band of the PSCT cells before and after UV irradiation were estimated. A blue shift of selective reflection of the PSCT cells was obtained after UV irradiation. PSCT cells with various reflecting colors and the dependence of the transmittance of the cells on applied voltage were investigated. Real image recording through a mask as well as the transmittance of PSCT cells controlled by applied voltage were also confirmed.