Enhanced amplified spontaneous emission in a quantum dot-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystal

Nanotechnology. 2016 Jul 1;27(26):26LT01. doi: 10.1088/0957-4484/27/26/26LT01. Epub 2016 May 19.

Abstract

Quantum dot-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystals (QD-PDLCs) were prepared by photoinitiated polymerization and sealed in capillary tubes. The concentration of QDs in the PDLC was 1 wt%. Amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) of the quantum dot-doped polymer-dispersed liquid crystals was observed with 532 nm wavelength laser excitation. The threshold for ASE was 6 mJ cm(-2), which is much lower than that for homogeneous quantum dot-doped polymer (25 mJ cm(-2)). The threshold for ASE was dramatically enhanced when the working temperature exceeded the clearing point of the liquid crystal; this result demonstrates that multi-scattering caused by the liquid crystals effectively improved the path length or dwell time of light in the gain region, which played a key role in decreasing the threshold for ASE.