A domestic research team says it has developed a next-generation nano-pattern element using a unique process which could enhance the quality of liquid crystal displays.

The team led by Professor Jung Hee-tae of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology says it used liquid crystals in a smectic phase to make the nano-patttern, a feat once thought impossible.

Smectic liquid crystals exist naturally in greater numbers and respond to stimuli more quickly than nematic liquid crystals, which are now used for manufacturing liquid crystal displays.

The team's results were published Monday in the online edition of the international journal Nature Materials.