The liquid crystal cladding waveguide uses the waveguide as the carrier and liquid crystal as the working substance. The liquid crystal in the cladding regulates the waveguide mode in the core layer through evanescent waves. Compared with traditional liquid crystal devices, liquid crystal cladding waveguides can cleverly decouple the light modulation distance and the thickness of the liquid crystal layer, and significantly reduce the liquid crystal rebound time based on the action of surface layer liquid crystals. It has the advantages of large modulation amplitude and fast response speed. This article reviews the research progress of liquid crystal cladding waveguide technology in the fields of beam scanning and Fourier transform spectroscopy, and looks forward to the application prospects of liquid crystal cladding waveguide technology in the field of reconfigurable photonic devices. Different macroscopic application performances are derived from the microscopic control of the waveguide mode by the liquid crystal cladding, and its unique working method gives new technical advantages to macroscopic applications. This review will provide an important research idea for new liquid crystal beam control methods.