Polarization-Independent Nematic Liquid Crystal Waveguides for Optofluidic Applications

We present the fabrication and the characterization of waveguides made of a nematic liquid crystal infiltrated in poly(dimethylsiloxane) channels. They are made by means of cast and molding technique and patterned using soft photolithography. The orientation of the nematic liquid crystal molecules induced by the poly(dimethylsiloxane) inner surfaces of the channels allows a polarization independent optical propagation. Optical transmission measurements showed an average of just 0.35 dB variation of light transmission versus input polarization orientation.