3A10 Optical Recording Device with a-Si Layer using Smectic Layer Rotation

Abstract

The optical recording device with an a-Si photoconductor layer has been proposed. This device stores a pattern as a change of smectic layer alignment. The smectic layer rotates by the application of asymmetric voltage pulses, and the rotation rate per one applied pulse depends on the amplitude of applied asymmetric pulses. Under the irradiation of light, the application of asymmetric pulses to the device will cause the layer rotation in the irradiated area due to the photoconductivity of a-Si. As a result, the layer alignment with the pattern of the irradiating light can be obtained.