Advances in Holographic Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal Technology

We discuss recent advances in reflective holographically-formed polymer dispersed liquid crystal materials in the context of their suitability for reflective display applications. A dual-domain phenomenon resulting in a broadened reflection peak is presented. A simple phenomenological model is developed to explain this unusual effect The effect of monomer functionality on the reflectance characteristics of these materials is also discussed. Monomers of effective functionality ∼4.5 yield the brightest holograms, however, the data suggests that these systems are currently far from optimal.