Liquid Crystals and Polymers - by Toralf Scharf Hardcover

Book Synopsis

Polarized Light in Liquid Crystals and Polymers deals with the linear optics of birefringent materials, such as liquid crystals and polymers, and surveys light propagation in such media with special attention to applications. It is unique in treating light propagation in micro- and nanostructured birefringent optical elements, such as lenses and gratings composed of birefringent materials, as well as the spatial varying anisotropic structures often found in miniaturized liquid crystal devices.

From the Back Cover

The latest advances in the optics of small birefringent structures

With the proliferation of liquid crystal technologies such as flat panel displays, understanding the polarization of light in liquid crystals has become a vital concern of optics, biology, communication, and numerous other areas in research and industry. Polarized Light in Liquid Crystals and Polymers deals with the linear optics of birefringent materials, such as liquid crystals and polymers, and surveys light propagation in such media with special attention to applications. It is unique in treating light propagation in micro- and nanostructured birefringent optical elements, such as lenses and gratings composed of birefringent materials, as well as the spatial varying anisotropic structures often found in miniaturized liquid crystal devices.

An all-inclusive book, Polarized Light in Liquid Crystals and Polymers features:

• A focus on high-resolution structures found in modern display devices
• An introduction to optical properties of liquid crystal texture
• Novel coverage of three-dimensional anisotropic materials with respect to their light propagation properties
• Tools such as matrix methods, ray tracing, and space-grid time-domain techniques to effectively solve optical simulation problems
• A number of examples using measurements and simulation
• Coverage of how to use the polarization microscope to characterize textures and structures in liquid crystals and polymers
• An overview of photonic devices based on liquid crystals, covering the state of the art of existing systems
• Unique coverage of gradient-index based devices
• Over 200 illustrations and tables
• A thorough listing of references

Presenting a comprehensive treatment of an exciting and rapidly developing field, Polarized Light in Liquid Crystals and Polymers provides both students and practitioners with a superlative resource for learning and reference.

Review Quotes

?Polarized Light in Liquid Crystals and Polymers by Toralf Scharf should be considered as essential reading for any postgraduate student embarking on the study of liquid crystals. In addition, the readily accessible index makes this book a valuable reference text for those already established in the field.? (Liquid Crystals Today, December 2009)

About the Author

Toralf Scharf is Senior Scientist at the University of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. His current research interests concern liquid crystal optics for display applications, implementation of organic birefringent optical materials into solid optical devices, and fabrication and characterization of micro-optics including diffractive and refractive effects. He was a coauthor of a chapter on micro-optics for spectrometry published in International Trends in Applied Optics, Vol. 5, and has published numerous papers.