Liquid Crystal Flowers Lead to Complex Lenses

Dec-27-13 Researchers have developed a method of growing liquid crystal flowers, opening the door to a new generation of smart surfaces and advanced sensors.

The team created the lenses by planting silica beads (polished grains of sand) in a pool of liquid crystal, which resulted in the formation of a pattern of defects. The defects then caused petal-like shapes to form in the liquid crystal in the tiered, convex shape of flower petals, with each row smaller than the one before it. Because the liquid crystal can interact with light, the complex assembly can function as a lens and focus light to a point beneath the silica bead—much like an insect’s compound eye.

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[GIZMAG.COM]
[UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA]

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