Formation of spatial structures in bistable optical elements containing nematic liquid crystals.
We present experimental results on bistable elements with liquid crystals as nonlinear elements showing that, under cw illumination, sequences of spatial structures occur. Index fluctuations, as a particular characteristic of this class of material, seem to play a central role in this effect. We describe the system and discuss some of its key properties.
Kreuzer
M
M
Balzer
W
W
Tschudi
T
T