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The dielectric spectroscopy measurements were performed for antiferroelectric liquid crystalline mixture. For this purpose, the cells with ITO electrodes were prepared. It was found that it is not possible to detect some important relaxation modes in Sm A*, Sm C*, and Sm CA* phases. The own cell mode (related to cell properties, i.e., capacity and resistivity) covers the dielectric response of liquid crystalline medium. Dielectric measurements in cells with gold electrodes were done to show all possible relaxations in antiferroelectric liquid crystals (LCs).

The combination of two dissimilar materials has always been a serious problem in dentistry. In order to meet this challenge, it is necessary to combine both chemical methods (treatment with silanes, (meth)acrylic functional monomers) and the development of the surface of the joined material in a physical way, e.g., by sandblasting with alumina, alumina with silica, acid etching, the use of lasers and other means. The purpose of this literature review is to present all methods of joining dental composites with other materials such as ceramics, metal, another composite material. This review covers articles published within the period 2012–2022 in journals indexed in the PubMed database, written in English and describing joining different dental materials to each other. All the critical steps of new joint preparation have been addressed, including proper cleaning of the joint surface, the application of appropriate primers capable of forming a chemical bond between ceramics, zirconium oxide or metals and alloys, and finally, the application of new composite materials.

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A new method for quick and pretty accurate measurements of splay, twist and bend elastic constants of nematic liquid crystals is experimentally verified. The main concept relies on exploiting only the electric field and determining magnitudes of nematic elastic constants from threshold fields for Freedericksz transitions in only one hybrid in-plane-switched cell. In such cell the deformations of an investigated liquid crystal are controlled by three separated pairs of electrodes confining measurement domains. In two of them inter-digital electrodes are mounted on one cell cover. Splay, twist and bend elastic constants can be measured by a proper choice of electrodes’ configuration together with orienting cover coatings (without applying magnetic fields). In this paper, we describe layout of our cells and results of experimental tests by using different liquid crystals: 5CB and 6CHBT (with positive dielectric anisotropy), Demus’ esters (with negative dielectric anisotropy) and new liquid crystals mixtures produced in our university.

A new accurate and fast interference method for determining ordinary and extraordinary refractive indices of nematic liquid crystals is presented and discussed. The method relies on microscopic measurements of distances between interference fringes appearing in polarised parallel coherent monochromatic light beam transmitted normally to the surfaces through a wedge cell filled with a nematic. Both glass plates confining the cell are coated with a partly transparent thin film of metal which is deposited by evaporation in vacuum. Owing to the multiple reflections between the surfaces and a small edge angle, the interference fringes observed near the wedge apex edge are sharp and equidistant. To apply this method one needs only small amount of an investigated liquid crystal. Basic mathematical formulae and results of an experiment are briefly discussed.

An electrically tunable optical vortex was generated in an antiparallel liquid crystal cell, where one electrode was patterned by a photomask, which is achieved by transferring a computer-generated hologram onto a transparency with a resolution of about 25 m. When a voltage was applied on the cell, an index modulation was induced due to the realignment of liquid crystal molecules, and then an optical vortex beam was produced. The diffraction efficiency measured was about 27.5%. The device also showed a reasonably fast response time.

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