Surface reformation on solution-derived zinc oxide films for liquid crystal systems via ion-beam irradiation

Abstract

We investigated solution-derived ZnO films as liquid crystal (LC) alignment layers via ion-beam (IB) irradiation. Solution processing was adopted to replace the sputtering method for the deposition of ZnO films as LC alignment layers. Uniform and homogeneous LC alignment was achieved, and a high-performance LC system was achieved using these substrates. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis showed that surface reformation of ZnO films by annealing and IB irradiation affects the uniformity of the LC alignment and allows control of the pretilt angle. Superior electro-optical (EO) characteristics of twisted nematic-LC cells constructed with IB-irradiated ZnO films were observed, which indicates that the proposed solution-derived ZnO films have strong potential for use in the production of advanced LC displays.