Realization of grayscale memory operation in a step-growth based polymer-stabilized ferroelectric liquid crystal system

A grayscale memory states operation can be realized in which the liquid crystal directors are uniformly aligned in each state. This operation is realized by a specific morphology of polymers obtained through step-growth polymerization of a thiol-ene stabilizing the ferroelectric liquid crystal system. The continuous director rotation (CDR) of liquid crystal (LC) molecules as well as the grayscale memory behavior is observed where the LC directors are oriented uniformly in each state. The memory operation is due to the interaction of LC molecules with the thiols intercalated in the smectic layer with one end of each thiol bound to the polymerized ene in the inter-layer planes. The morphology of the polymer in the liquid crystal plays a crucial role in the existence of grayscale memory behavior, and the morphology depends strongly on the phase of the sample when the thiol-ene monomers are polymerized. A new mechanism is suggested for the CDR motion of the ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC).