WO1990014611A1 - Protection optique rapide utilisant un cristal liquide smectique - Google Patents

Protection optique rapide utilisant un cristal liquide smectique Download PDF

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Publication number
WO1990014611A1
WO1990014611A1 PCT/US1990/002975 US9002975W WO9014611A1 WO 1990014611 A1 WO1990014611 A1 WO 1990014611A1 US 9002975 W US9002975 W US 9002975W WO 9014611 A1 WO9014611 A1 WO 9014611A1
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
liquid crystal
limiter
light
incident
electromagnetic energy
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/US1990/002975
Other languages
English (en)
Inventor
James L. Fergason
Sun C. Fan Ning
Jesse David Buck
Original Assignee
Optical Shields, Inc.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Optical Shields, Inc. filed Critical Optical Shields, Inc.
Publication of WO1990014611A1 publication Critical patent/WO1990014611A1/fr

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Classifications

    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02F—OPTICAL DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE CONTROL OF LIGHT BY MODIFICATION OF THE OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF THE MEDIA OF THE ELEMENTS INVOLVED THEREIN; NON-LINEAR OPTICS; FREQUENCY-CHANGING OF LIGHT; OPTICAL LOGIC ELEMENTS; OPTICAL ANALOGUE/DIGITAL CONVERTERS
    • G02F1/00—Devices or arrangements for the control of the intensity, colour, phase, polarisation or direction of light arriving from an independent light source, e.g. switching, gating or modulating; Non-linear optics
    • G02F1/35—Non-linear optics
    • G02F1/3511—Self-focusing or self-trapping of light; Light-induced birefringence; Induced optical Kerr-effect
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G02—OPTICS
    • G02F—OPTICAL DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE CONTROL OF LIGHT BY MODIFICATION OF THE OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF THE MEDIA OF THE ELEMENTS INVOLVED THEREIN; NON-LINEAR OPTICS; FREQUENCY-CHANGING OF LIGHT; OPTICAL LOGIC ELEMENTS; OPTICAL ANALOGUE/DIGITAL CONVERTERS
    • G02F1/00—Devices or arrangements for the control of the intensity, colour, phase, polarisation or direction of light arriving from an independent light source, e.g. switching, gating or modulating; Non-linear optics
    • G02F1/0009—Materials therefor
    • G02F1/0063—Optical properties, e.g. absorption, reflection or birefringence

Definitions

  • nematic liquid crystal material in a containment medium has been to effect controlled scattering of incident light.
  • the ordinary index of refraction and the extraordinary index of refraction of the liquid crystal are, respectively, the same as and different from the index of refraction of the medium, when the extraordinary index is encountered light will refract at the interface of the liquid crystal and medium and will scatter and when the ordinary index is encountered light will be transmitted without substantial refraction or scattering.
  • pleochroic dye has been used together with nematic liquid crystal material that is responsive to a prescribed input to dye, to filter or to absorb light as a function, for example, of structural characteristics of the liquid crystal material and dye.
  • a liquid crystal optical limiter in accordance with the present invention is designated 10.
  • the optical limiter 10 appears as a liquid crystal cell that includes liquid crystal material 12 sandwiched between a pair of media 14, 16, the media preferably being a material that provides surfaces 18, 20 or means to define surfaces, such as glass plates, plastic plates, etc.
  • Material 1 is a combination of the following ingredients in the indicated percentages by weight:
  • liquid crystal material 12 has positive dielectric anisotropy, it will tend to align in parallel with such a field; and if the liquid crystal material has negative dielectric anisotropy, it will tend to align generally perpendicularly to the direction of the field; but in either case the liquid crystal alignment will be that of the bookshelf configuration illustrated and described herein.
  • nematic liquid crystal material usually aligns directionally in parallel alignment; however, there is no positional alignment, e.g., of the type that is exhibited by smectic liquid crystal material.
  • Fig. 3B the helical or twisted alignment that is assumed by cholesteric liquid crystal material and twisted nematic liquid crystal material is illustrated.
  • Fig. 3C is illustrated the alignment of smectic liquid crystal material, namely, the liquid crystal structure is parallel and there is positional alignment whereby the liquid crystal molecules are organized in respective layers (e.g., as layers 22a, 22b, etc. described above with respect to Fig. 1).
  • Fig. 13 is illustrated a graph showing the amount of power limiting for optical limiter 10 as a function of the direction of the electric vector E for incident (input) light 42 relative to the direction of the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules 12.
  • On the abscissa are microjoules power for the input light 42, 42'; on the ordinate are microjoules of the output light 48, 48'.
  • the various data points in the graph of Fig. 13 e.g, "x", "+”, "*", and a "square” represent angles of electric vector parallel to the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules; at right angles; at 45 degrees and at 67 degrees to such long axis, respectively.

Landscapes

  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Nonlinear Science (AREA)
  • General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Optics & Photonics (AREA)
  • Liquid Crystal (AREA)

Abstract

Un limiteur optique (10) comprend un cristal liquide smectique (12) entre des supports de délimitation (14, 16), le cristal liquide étant aligné dans des couches (22a, b, etc.) lesquelles sont orientées perpendiculairement auxdits supports. Lesdits supports comprennent de préférence des surfaces respectives (18, 20).
PCT/US1990/002975 1989-05-25 1990-05-25 Protection optique rapide utilisant un cristal liquide smectique WO1990014611A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US35697489A 1989-05-25 1989-05-25
US356,974 1989-05-25

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO1990014611A1 true WO1990014611A1 (fr) 1990-11-29

Family

ID=23403758

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/US1990/002975 WO1990014611A1 (fr) 1989-05-25 1990-05-25 Protection optique rapide utilisant un cristal liquide smectique

Country Status (4)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0474736A4 (fr)
JP (1) JPH04505374A (fr)
AU (1) AU5738090A (fr)
WO (1) WO1990014611A1 (fr)

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5159475A (en) * 1989-05-25 1992-10-27 Optical Shields, Inc. High speed optical protection using smectic liquid crystal
US5751258A (en) * 1991-03-25 1998-05-12 Osd Envizion, Inc. Liquid crystal lens driver electronics for eye protection, high speed shuttering with consistent performance
US7477330B2 (en) 2005-03-09 2009-01-13 3M Innovative Properties Company Automatic darkening filter with offset polarizers
US7637622B2 (en) 2005-10-11 2009-12-29 3M Innovative Properties Company Control of an automatic darkening filter
US9956118B2 (en) 2014-09-15 2018-05-01 3M Innovative Properties Company Personal protective system tool communication adapter

Citations (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4765719A (en) * 1987-02-04 1988-08-23 Fergason James L Optical protection using smectic liquid crystal
US4834906A (en) * 1985-01-22 1989-05-30 Merck Patent Gesellschaft Mit Beschrankter Haftung Smectic A liquid crystal compositions
US4883344A (en) * 1986-03-20 1989-11-28 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Liquid crystal device having a modified polyvinyl alcohol alignment layer
US4886620A (en) * 1985-09-18 1989-12-12 Merck Patent Gesellschaft Mit Beschrankter Haftung Smectic liquid-crystalline phases
US4888126A (en) * 1987-08-28 1989-12-19 Linear Optics Company, Inc. Light modulating material and method for preparing same
US4893907A (en) * 1986-04-04 1990-01-16 British Telecommunications Public Limited Company Optical devices
US4913530A (en) * 1987-11-10 1990-04-03 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Liquid crystal display

Patent Citations (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4834906A (en) * 1985-01-22 1989-05-30 Merck Patent Gesellschaft Mit Beschrankter Haftung Smectic A liquid crystal compositions
US4886620A (en) * 1985-09-18 1989-12-12 Merck Patent Gesellschaft Mit Beschrankter Haftung Smectic liquid-crystalline phases
US4883344A (en) * 1986-03-20 1989-11-28 Canon Kabushiki Kaisha Liquid crystal device having a modified polyvinyl alcohol alignment layer
US4893907A (en) * 1986-04-04 1990-01-16 British Telecommunications Public Limited Company Optical devices
US4765719A (en) * 1987-02-04 1988-08-23 Fergason James L Optical protection using smectic liquid crystal
US4888126A (en) * 1987-08-28 1989-12-19 Linear Optics Company, Inc. Light modulating material and method for preparing same
US4913530A (en) * 1987-11-10 1990-04-03 Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha Liquid crystal display

Non-Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
See also references of EP0474736A4 *

Cited By (9)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US5159475A (en) * 1989-05-25 1992-10-27 Optical Shields, Inc. High speed optical protection using smectic liquid crystal
US5751258A (en) * 1991-03-25 1998-05-12 Osd Envizion, Inc. Liquid crystal lens driver electronics for eye protection, high speed shuttering with consistent performance
US7477330B2 (en) 2005-03-09 2009-01-13 3M Innovative Properties Company Automatic darkening filter with offset polarizers
US7884888B2 (en) 2005-03-09 2011-02-08 3M Innovative Properties Company Automatic darkening filter with offset polarizers
US7637622B2 (en) 2005-10-11 2009-12-29 3M Innovative Properties Company Control of an automatic darkening filter
US7810937B2 (en) 2005-10-11 2010-10-12 3M Innovative Properties Company Control of an automatic darkening filter
US8047664B2 (en) 2005-10-11 2011-11-01 3M Innovative Properties Company Control of an automatic darkening filter
US9956118B2 (en) 2014-09-15 2018-05-01 3M Innovative Properties Company Personal protective system tool communication adapter
US11090192B2 (en) 2014-09-15 2021-08-17 3M Innovative Properties Company Personal protective system tool communication adapter

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPH04505374A (ja) 1992-09-17
EP0474736A1 (fr) 1992-03-18
EP0474736A4 (en) 1992-09-09
AU5738090A (en) 1990-12-18

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