A simple nematic guest-host model

A simple model is presented in which a nematic guest-host layer is described as a single birefringent slab. The layer properties are derived from the geometry of the dye molecule, the direction of the absorption dipole transition with respect to the molecular axis and the order parameter of the dye in the nematic host. The resultant absorption indicatrix is related to the properties of a layer in a display cell, including tilt angle, using a Mueller matrix to describe the full 'on' and 'off' states of a display cell. The model is extremely simple to use in this form. Intermediate states of a cell could be modeled by dividing the cell into a series of laminae. (C) 1999 The Optical Society of America. [S1070- 9762(99)01106-9].