Metamaterial Property in C-Dots (Semiconductor Nanocrystals) Dispersed Nematic Liquid Crystal

Abstract

Liquid crystal is a very fascinating phase of matter for the investigation of optical properties due to its response to electromagnetic radiation. Its optical properties can be altered by interaction with different dopants such as nanoparticles, dyes, quantum particles, polymers, ions etc. The present investigation explores the interaction between nematic liquid crystal (NLC) ZLI 2222-000 and a semiconductor nano-crystal, i.e., Carbon quantum dots (C-Dots) in different concentrations. Various optical characterizations have been conducted to study different optical parameters of the system for its application in photonics and fiber optics. Different optical parameters such as energy band gap, optical density, effective refractive index, skin depth, optical dielectric permittivity, and optical dielectric loss of the pristine and NLC-QDs composites are calculated. The increment in the various optical properties is found for the composite system which may be attributed to the plasmonic effect present in the system. The observed negative optical permittivity provides it a property of meta-materials. The FTIR spectrum confirms the presence of a nitrile group in the molecular structure of the liquid crystal sample. The present investigation is crucial for meta-materials, photonics, fiber optic system, dielectric waveguides, optical devices, and communication devices based on liquid crystals.