The ferroelectric nematic phase: An optimum liquid crystal candidate for nonlinear optics

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates that ferroelectric nematic materials exhibit exceptionally high nonlinear optical susceptibilities, making them promising candidates for advanced photonic devices, with potential for further enhancement through molecular design.

Contribution

It provides the first measurement of high second-harmonic generation efficiency in ferroelectric nematic liquid crystals, highlighting their potential for nonlinear optical applications.

Findings

Nonlinear susceptibility of 5.6 pmV-1 in NF material

NF materials have high potential for NLO device applications

Room for improvement in NF material properties through molecular design

Abstract

Materials that exhibit high nonlinear optical (NLO) susceptibilities are considered as promising candidates for a wide range of photonic and electronic applications. Here we argue that the ferroelectric nematic (NF) materials have sufficient potentialities to become materials for the next-generation of NLO devices. We have carried out a study of the efficiency of optical second-harmonic generation in a prototype NF material, finding a nonlinear susceptibility of 5.6 pmV-1 in the transparent regime, one of the highest ever reported in ferroelectric liquid crystals. Given the fact that the studied molecule was not specifically designed for NLO applications we conclude there is still margin to obtain NF materials with enhanced properties that should allow their practical use.