Polarization selective photoresist based on reactive liquid crystals doped with a dichroic photoinitiator

We developed a polarization-selective negative photoresist based on a smectic B liquid crystal monomer host functionalized with a dichroic photoinitiator. The smectic phase enables high-order parameter uniaxial alignment of the monomer host molecules. It is shown that the dichroic initiator aligns with the host which provides the polarization selectivity upon UV initiation of the polymerization of the monomer system. The polymerization contrast with respect to its sensitivity for polarized UV light can become infinitely high by the addition of an inhibitor. We tested the new lithographic material for its application in polarization holography. These experiments show that the polymerization contrast can be translated into the formation of well-defined structures but require further optimization.