Local deformation of liquid crystal director induced by translational motion of carbon nanotubes under in-plane field

The translational motion of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) dispersed in a nematic liquid crystal (NLC) has been observed in the fabricated CNT-doped homogeneously aligned NLC cells by applying in-plane electric field. The long axis of CNTs was aligned along the LC director in the initial state. However, the CNTs above a critical ac electric field, due to their net charge, overcame the LC director field to generate translational motion and as a consequence distorted the local LC directors to have light leakage. We observed the motional textures in the form of vertical stripes in the local area between electrodes, which were explained by a translational motion of CNTs above critical ac fields. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.