Laser-induced thermal, orientational, and density nonlinear optical effects in nematic liquid crystals

Abstract
We present a theoretical analysis of transient diffractions in nematic liquid crystals, where the nonlinear optical response is due to laser-induced changes in the temperature, density, and director axis reorientation. Our solutions of the field-induced reorientation equation and the coupled density and thermal conduction equations provide a quantitative theoretical model for the experimentally observed grating diffractions, oscillations, and relaxation phenomena.