Blue phase liquid crystalline polymers and its application in manned spacecraft

摘要

As novel Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) materials, blue phase liquid crystalline polymers have attracted considerable attention and interests, mainly because of their unique properties, including wide angle of view, fast response times and selective reflection of light. Blue phases are mesophases usually exhibited by highly chiral materials and commonly occur in a narrow temperature range below the isotropic phase. They are optically active and non-birefringent, while exhibit Bragg diffraction of light in the visible wavelength. So they can improve and enhance the performances of liquid crystal display in manned spacecraft. The development and recent advances are reviewed with a brief introduction of the history of the blue phase studies. Some special properties are analyzed especially the frustration in the double twist molecular alignment. The application prospect of blue phase liquid crystalline polymers in manned spacecraft are discussed. Because of high resolution, high response speed, low power, low weight and small footprint, blue phase liquid crystal displays can meet the technique requirements on displays in our future manned spacecrafts, especially space station. Blue phase liquid crystalline polymers have more superior performances on viewing angle. Thus, blue phase LCD is a better choice to improve the viewing angle in manned spacecrafts.