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Nematic Liquid-Crystal Necklace Structure Made by Microfluidics System.

Yoshiko Takenaka¹, Miha Škarabot², Igor Muševič^2,3

¹Research Institute for Sustainable Chemistry, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), 1-1-1, Higashi, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8565, Japan.

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Summary

We fabricated a novel liquid crystal and poly(vinyl alcohol) necklace structure using microfluidics. This structure exhibits elastically stretchable tethers connecting liquid crystal droplets, enabling Whispering Gallery Modes.

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Area of Science:

Materials Science
Soft Matter Physics
Microfluidics

Background:

Liquid crystals (LCs) are widely used in displays and optical devices.
Microfluidic devices enable precise fabrication of complex microstructures.
Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) is a versatile water-soluble polymer.

Purpose of the Study:

To fabricate and characterize a novel necklace structure composed of liquid crystal droplets connected by PVA microtethers.
To investigate the mechanical and optical properties of the microtethered LC droplet system.
To explore the potential for generating Whispering Gallery Modes within the LC droplets.

Main Methods:

Fabrication of the LC-PVA necklace structure using a microfluidic device.
Analysis of the structure using fluorescent confocal microscopy.
Determination of tether elastic properties via laser tweezers.
Observation of Whispering Gallery Modes (WGMs) within the LC droplets.

Main Results:

A stable necklace structure of LC droplets connected by birefringent, stretchable PVA-LC composite microtethers was successfully fabricated.
The microtethers were shown to be elastically stretchable without penetrating the LC droplets.
The elastic constant of the microtethers was quantified using laser tweezers.
Whispering Gallery Modes were observed to circulate within individual LC droplets of the necklace structure.

Conclusions:

The microfluidic fabrication method allows for the creation of unique LC-PVA necklace structures with tunable mechanical properties.
The observed WGMs suggest potential applications in optical sensing and resonant devices.
This study demonstrates a new approach for integrating microfluidics, soft matter, and optics.