We show that a hybrid LC-ferroelectric nanoparticle suspension of liquid crystal E7 doped with BaTiO₃ nanoparticles leads to 10% increase in birefringence in the THz region of spectrum as compared to pure E7. Doped liquid crystals can be used to increase performance of THz modulators and waveplates. BaTiO₃ nanoparticles used in the mixture were synthesised with the sol gel technique, and their refractive index has been measured in THz in powder form and in solution.

W1832A, a dual-frequency, multi-component nematic mixture prepared at the Military University of Technology, was investigated by means of dielectric spectroscopy over a wide frequency range (100 Hz–10 MHz) and over a wide temperature range (−60°C–100°C). At the temperature of −60°C it is still a nematic. The investigated mixture changes the sign of dielectric anisotropy at temperature and frequency domains. High-precision dielectric spectroscopy studies of molecular motions (around short (S) and long (L) molecular axes) were performed using cells of 5 μm thickness. Gold electrodes in measuring cells were spin-coated with agents for homogenous and homeotropic alignments. In the low-temperature region these motions are hindered enough to observe intra-molecular motions, which typically (at room temperature) are observed in THz frequency range of the measuring field. S molecular motion is eliminated from the measurement range at temperatures below −15°C, while L mode is still observed at −60°C. Dielectric spectroscopy results were compared with THz spectroscopy at room temperature.

In this article, optical properties of four fluoro-substituted 4-propyl-4′-[(4-ethylphenyl)ethynyl] biphenyls and liquid crystal mixture A are presented in the terahertz (THz) range. Birefringence, refractive indices and absorption coefficients for ordinary and extraordinary ray of liquid crystals are described in the range of 0.3 to 3.0 THz. It shows that the measured parameters are dependent on the number and placement of fluorine atoms in the molecules. Measurements have been performed using time-pulsed spectroscopy.

Dielectric singularities (DSs) constitute one of the most exotic features occurring in the effective permittivity of artificial multilayers called hyperbolic metamaterials (HMMs). Associated to DSs, a rich phenomenology arises that justifies the ever-increasing interest profuse by the photonic community in achieving an active control of their properties. As an example, the possibility to “canalize” light down to the nanoscale as well as the capability of HMMs to interact with quantum emitters, placed in their proximity, enhancing their emission rate (Purcell effect), are worth mentioning. HMMs, however, suffer of an intrinsic lack of tunability of its DSs. Several architectures have been proposed to overcome this limit and, among them, the use of graphene outstands. Graphene-based HMMs recently shown outstanding canalization capabilities achieving λ/1660 light collimation. Despite the exceptional performances promised by these structures, stacking graphene/oxide multilayers is still an experimental challenge, especially envisioning electrical gating of all the graphene layers. In this paper, we propose a valid alternative in which indium-tin-oxide (ITO) is used as an electrically tunable metal. Here we have numerically designed and analyzed an ITO/SiO₂based HMM with a tunable canalization wavelength within the range between 1.57 and 2.74 μm. The structure feature light confinement of λ/8.8 (resolution of about 178 nm), self-focusing of the light down to 0.26 μm and Purcell factor of approximately 700. The proposed HMM nanoarchitecture could be potentially used in many applications, such as ultra-fast signal processing, high harmonic generation, lab-on-a-chip nanodevices, bulk plasmonic waveguides in integrated photonic circuits and laser diode collimators.

Liquid crystals (LCs) with high optical anisotropy are very desirable for different applications in devices, such as filters, phase shifters, or phase gratings [T. Göbel, P. Meissner, A. Gaebler, M. Koeberle, S. Mueller, and R. Jakoby, Dual-Frequency Switching Liquid Crystal Based Tunable THz Filter, CLEO, Baltimore, MD, 2009; C.-Y. Chen, T.-R. Tsai, C.-L. Pan, and R.-P. Pan, Room temperature terahertz phase shifter based on magnetically controlled birefringence in liquid crystals, Appl. Phys. Lett. 83 (2003), pp. 4497–4499; and C.-J. Lin, C.-H. Lin, Y.-T. Li, R.-P. Pan, and C.-L. Pan, Electrically controlled liquid crystal phase grating for terahertz waves, IEEE Photon. Technol. Lett. 21 (2009), pp. 730–732]. We present spectral studies of LCs with large optical anisotropy in the range from 0.3 to 3 THz. Nematic LC mixtures which have Δn > 0.30 for visible frequency range, i.e., 1825 (Δn = 0.42 at 633 nm) were measured. Properties of LC materials like birefringence, absorption coefficients, and refractive indices for ordinary and extraordinary polarization in THz range were obtained. Orientation of LC was done by a high electric field. Measurements were performed using a TDS spectra 3000 spectrometer.