This work demonstrates the feasibility of a polarizer-free, electrically switchable and optically rewritable display based on dye-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (DD-PDLCs). Experimental results indicate that the doped dyes are homeotropically adsorbed onto the polymer film when an appropriate AC voltage is applied during patterning. The adsorbed dyes in the illuminated region then align the liquid crystals homeotropically, and produce a transparent pattern in the scattering background without any polarizer. Notably, the adsorbed dyes can be erased and readsorbed using thermal and optical treatments, respectively. The switching time of the fabricated display is of the order of milliseconds, and the contrast ratio is approximately 30.

This letter demonstrates the feasibility of producing variable liquid crystal ͑LC͒ pretilt angles using light-induced ripple structures ͑LIRSs͒ in homeotropically aligned azo dye-doped liquid crystals ͑ADDLCs͒. Illuminating homeotropically aligned ADDLCs with a linearly polarized light for a suitable period yields the LIRSs which provide LCs an anisotropic homogeneous anchoring force. Experimentally, the effective alignment force produced by the homeotropic alignment layer and the LIRSs determines the LC pretilt angle ͑24°to 63.5°͒, defined from the normal to the substrate. A no-bias pi cell for liquid crystal displays is demonstrated using this approach.

We demonstrate polarization-independent holographic gratings (PIHGs) based on azo-dye-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystal films. The PIHGs are recorded by irradiation under an intensity-modulated interference field, generated by two linearly polarized green optical beams, and by simultaneously applying a suitable AC voltage to the sample. The photoexcited azo dyes are adsorbed onto the UV-cured polymer film with their long axes parallel to the normal of the substrate. When the applied voltage is switched off, the PIHGs are generated with periodic modulation of liquid-crystal structures with transparently homeotropic and randomly scattered alignments. Additionally, the generated PIHGs can be completely switched off by an applied voltage.

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