We proposed a patterned vertical alignment (PVA) mode controlled by a modified surface with ultraviolet (UV) curable reactive mesogen (RM) mixed with vertical alignment material for a liquid crystal display (LCD) with fast response time. In the surface-controlled PVA (SC-PVA) mode, the RM monomers in the alignment layer are polymerized along the LC directors by UV exposure under an applied voltage. The polymerized RMs produce a pretilt against the substrate normal depending on the applied field direction in the patterned electrode configuration. In such SC-PVA mode, fast response time was achieved at whole grey levels with the predetermined rotational preference of the LC directors governed by the pretilt direction.

Epitaxial growth of ZnO nanowires was carried out using a modified thermal evaporation method with inexpensive experimental setup. ZnO nanowires were synthesized using ZnO thin films. The ZnO thin films were deposited as a buffer layer on silicon and sapphire using an impinging flow reactor (IFR). The IFR system is a modified version of a chemical bath deposition (CBD). Films can be created at low temperature, without any metallic catalysts. The properties of Zinc Oxide films are dependant upon the type of substrate used. The same deposition process with a different substrates yields two films with different properties. The most critical effect on growth of ZnO nanowires were dependent the properties of the buffer layer deposited on the substrate. It was not the type of substrate used. A cost-efficient method for epitaxial growth of single crystal ZnO nanowires is proposed in this work.