Abstract:

We report the organization of polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs) into ordered concentric rings over large areas by drying a drop of bound PDLC toluene solution (i.e., confined between a spherical lens and an indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass substrate; sphere-on-ITOgeometry). The formation of regular ring-like deposits was a direct consequence of controlled "stick-slip" cycles of three-phase contact line during the course of solvent evaporation, which was effectively regulated through the use of the sphere-on-ITO geometry. This simple approach based on controlled evaporative organization may provide a new means of processing polymer/LC mixture to produce ordered surface patterns in one step, where microscopic LCs are dispersed within the polymer matrix.

Key words: Liquid bridge, Polymer-dispersed liquid crystal, Controlled evaporative organization, "Stick-slip", motion