Cholesteric liquid-crystal laser as an optic fiber-based temperature sensor

In this work, we have studied the temperature dependence of a cholesteric liquid-crystal laser coupled to an optical fiber, with a view towards optical fiber sensor applications. To stabilize the laser emission, we developed a procedure to align the liquid crystal placed in the fiber. Unexpected oscillations in the laser emission were observed as the temperature was varied, which can be understood in terms of the competition between bulk and surface anchoring torques. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.