ABSTRACT
The physical properties of polymer dispersed liquid crystals (PDLC) can be tuned as per the application requirement by controlling their composition ratio and microstructure. The addition of nanoparticles is the most convenient method to engineer the properties of PDLCs. This paper investigates the effects of barium titanate (BaTiO3) nanoparticle doping on the morphology, electro-optic, and optical properties of PDLC films. The epoxy resins based PDLC films prepared by polymerisation induced phase separation via heat curing method are doped with BaTiO3 nanoparticle for the first time. The impact of BaTiO3 nanoparticle on the microstructure was studied using polarising optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The electro-optic study reveals that the addition of BaTiO3 nanoparticle results in the reduction of rise time, threshold voltage, saturation voltage and enhancement in the contrast ratio. The doping also results in a decrement of the off-state transmittance curve and an increment in the UV-Visible absorption spectrum. The development of BaTiO3 doped PDLC films with faster rise time, lower threshold voltage, lower saturation voltage and better contrast ratio will significantly enhance the potential technological applications of PDLC-based devices for smart windows, sensors and flexible devices.
Graphical Abstract
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Professor A.K. Ganguli, Department of Chemistry, IIT Delhi for providing nanoparticles and Professor Josemon Jacob, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, IIT Delhi for significant contribution in this research.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.