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This textbook gradually introduces students to the statistical mechanical study of the different phases of matter and to the phase transitions between them. It uses simple yet fully detailed models of both hard and soft matter systems to demonstrate core concepts, developing the subject matter in a thorough and accessible pedagogical manner throughout. Starting from an introduction to basic thermodynamics and statistical physics, the book progresses from ideal, non-interacting systems to real systems exhibiting classical interactions and phase transitions. It concludes with a selection of more advanced topics, such as the renormalisation group approach to critical phenomena, the density functional theory of interfaces, and kinematic aspects of the phase transformation process.This updated second edition features a considerably expanded study of the topology of the phases, including applications to modern problems such as topological defects of nematic liquid crystals and the topological phase transition of a two-dimensional spin system. Along with a complete introductory overview of the theory of phase transitions, this textbook provides students with ample material for deeper study. References include suggestions for more detailed treatments and six appendices supply overviews of the mathematical tools employed in the text.

The work focuses on recent developments of the rapidly evolving field of Non-conventional Liquid Crystals. After a concise introduction it discusses the most promising research such as biosensing, elastomers, polymer films, photoresponsive properties and energy harvesting. Besides future applications it discusses as well potential frontiers in LC science and technology.

Introduction to Liquid Crystals: Chemistry and Physics, Second Edition relies on only introductory level chemistry and physics as the foundation for understanding liquid crystal science. Liquid crystals combine the material properties of solids with the flow properties of fluids. As such they have provided the foundation for a revolution in low-power, flat-panel display technology (LCDs). In this book, the essential elements of liquid crystal science are introduced and explained from the perspectives of both the chemist and physicist. This new edition relies on only introductory level physics and chemistry as the foundation for understanding liquid crystal science and is, therefore, ideal for students and recent graduates. Features Introduces and explains the essential elements of liquid crystal science, including discussion of how liquid crystals have been utilized for innovative and important applications. New to this edition are over 300 figures, 90 end-of chapter exercises, and an increased scope that includes recent developments. Combines the knowledge of two eminent scientists in the field; they have fully updated and expanded the text to cover undergraduate/graduate course work as well as current research in what is now a billion-dollar industry. Immerses the reader in the vocabulary, structures, data, and kinetic models, rapidly building up an understanding of the theories and models in current use. Begins with a historical account of the discovery of liquid crystals and continues with a description of how different phases are generated and how different molecular architectures affect liquid crystal properties.

Sonja Dieterich zeigt, dass die Natur der Phasenumwandlung von der smektischen A- in die smektische C‑Phase ein wichtiges Kriterium für die Anwendbarkeit des Langevin-Modells ist, welches das elektrooptische Verhalten von Flüssigkristallen vom de Vries-Typ beschreibt. Dagegen spielt die genaue chemische Struktur des Mesogens, die seine nanosegregierenden Eigenschaften beeinflusst, eine untergeordnete Rolle. Weiterhin konnte die Autorin smektische Schichten kalamitischer nanosegregierender Mesogene mittels Freeze-Fracture Transmissionselektronenmikroskopie direkt abbilden.

This thesis describes lyotropic chromonic liquid crystals (LCLCs) with exotic elastic and viscous properties. The first part of the thesis presents a thorough analysis of the elastic and viscous properties of LCLCs as functions of concentration, temperature and ionic contents, while the second part explores an active nematic system: living liquid crystals, which represent a combination of LCLC and living bacteria. LCLCs are an emerging class of liquid crystals that have shown profound connections to biological systems in two aspects. First, the assembly process of the chromonic aggregates is essentially the same as DNA oligomers and other super-molecular assemblies of biological origin. LCLCs thus provide an excellent model system for studying physical properties such as the elasticity and viscosity of these supramolecular assemblies. Second, LCLCs are biocompatible, thus serving as a unique anisotropic matrix to interface with living systems such asbacteria. This thesis deepens our understanding of both aspects. The noncovalent nature of chromonic aggregation produces the unique viscoelasticity to be found in LCLCs, which differs dramatically from that of traditional LCs. Anisotropic interactions between LCLCs and bacteria lead to fascinating phenomena such as the deformation of LCLCs with a characteristic wavelength determined by the elasticity of the LCLCs and the activity of the bacteria, orientationally controlled trajectories of bacteria and visualization of 24 nm flagella motion.

This book brings together the many concepts and discoveries in liquid crystal colloids contributed over the last twenty years and scattered across numerous articles and book chapters. It provides both a historical overview of the development of the field and a clear perspective on the future applications in photonics. The book covers all phenomena observed in liquid crystal colloids with an emphasis on experimental tools and applications of topology in condensed matter, as well as practical micro-photonics applications. It includes a number of spectacular manifestations of new topological phenomena not found or difficult to observe in other systems. Starting from the early works on nematic colloids, it explains the basics of topological defects in ordered media, charge and winding, and the elastic forces between colloidal particles in nematics. Following a detailed description of experimental methods, such as optical tweezing and particle tracking, the book eases the reader into the theoretical part, which deals with elastic deformation of nematic liquid crystals due to inclusions and surface alignment. This is discussed in the context of basic mean field Landau-de Gennes Q-tensor theory, with a brief explanation of the free-energy minimization numerical methods. There then follows an excursion into the topology of complex nematic colloidal structures, colloidal entanglement, knotting and linking. Nematic droplets, shells, handlebodies and chiral topological structures are addressed in separate chapters. The book concludes with an extensive chapter on the photonic properties of nematic dispersions, presenting the concept of integrated soft matter photonics and discussing the concepts of nematic and chiral nematic microlasers, surface-sensitive photonic devices and smectic microfibers. The text is complemented by a large bibliography, explanatory sketches and beautiful micrographs.

Dendrimers are hyperbranched molecules with well-defined nanometer-scale dimensions. Important technological applications of these systems, both in biomedicine and materials science, have been recently proposed. Liquid crystal dendrimers are fascinating materials that combine the characteristics of dendrimers with the anisotropic physical behaviour and molecular self-organization typical of liquid crystals. This unique association of physical and chemical properties, together with the possibility of multi-selective functionalization put forward by dendrimers, opens new perspectives for applications. Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a powerful experimental technique applied in materials science and an important tool to the study of molecular organization and dynamics. This book presents an introduction to dendrimers properties with special insight into liquid crystal dendrimers and a detailed description of the NMR theory and experimental techniques used in the investigation of these materials. It also discusses recent NMR research results on liquid crystal dendrimers, with emphasis on molecular order and dynamics studies. This book introduces the properties of dendrimers, with special insight into liquid crystal dendrimers, and a detailed description of NMR theory and experimental techniques used in the investigation of these materials. It also discusses results of recent NMR research on liquid crystal dendrimers, with an emphasis on molecular order and dynamics studies. Advanced undergraduate and graduate students of physics, chemistry, and materials science and researchers in the fields of dendrimers, liquid crystals, and NMR will find the book extremely useful.

Liquid Crystal Sensors discusses novel applications of liquid crystals that lie beyond electrically driven optical switches and displays. The main focus is on recent progress in the area of sensors based on low molar mass and polymer liquid crystals. This area of research became'hot'in recent years since the possibilities for applications of liquid crystal sensors are growing in many areas, ranging from the detection of mechanical displacements to the detection of environmental pollutants and chemical agents.This book is well-suited for students, as well as scientists from different backgrounds. For students and researchers new to the field, it gives a thorough introduction. For experienced researchers it shows the latest breakthroughs and serves as an inspiration for solving problems or sparking new ideas.Key Features: Emphasizes how liquid crystals are extremely sensitive to external stimuli and therefore can be used for the construction of stimuli-responsive devices, such as sensors Includes the contributions of editors who are deeply involved in the field and author chapters on hot topics such as the sensitivity of liquid crystals to pollutants, UV light, and strain Provides an exclusive on LC sensors where having the data in one place will be very useful to the community Gives more information on sensors and broadens the scope by having a contributed volume rather than authored Combines recent data on advances in the area of liquid crystal sensors that includes many types of liquid crystal materials

In this thesis Johanna Bruckner reports the discovery of the lyotropic counterpart of the thermotropic SmC• phase, which has become famous as the only spontaneously polarized, ferroelectric fluid in nature. By means of polarizing optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction and electro-optic experiments she firmly establishes aspects of the structure of the novel lyotropic liquid crystalline phase and elucidates its fascinating properties, among them a pronounced polar electro-optic effect, analogous to the ferroelectric switching of its thermotropic counterpart. The helical ground state of the mesophase raises the fundamental question of how chiral interactions are'communicated'across layers of more or less disordered and achiral solvent molecules which are located between adjacent bi-layers of the chiral amphiphile molecules. This thesis bridges an important gap between thermotropic and lyotropic liquid crystals and pioneers a new field of liquid crystal research.

This book focuses on the exciting topic of nanoscience with liquid crystals: from self-organized nanostructures to applications. The elegant self-organized liquid crystalline nanostructures, the synergetic characteristics of liquid crystals and nanoparticles, liquid crystalline nanomaterials, synthesis of nanomaterials using liquid crystals as templates, nanoconfinement and nanoparticles of liquid crystals are covered and discussed, and the prospect of fabricating functional materials is highlighted. Contributions, collecting the scattered literature of the field from leading and active players, are compiled to make the book a reference book. Readers will find the book useful and of benefit both as summaries for works in this field and as tutorials and explanations of concepts for those just entering the field. Additionally, the book helps to stimulate future developments.

Igor Musevic, Cindy Nieuwkerk and Theo Rasing Since the pioneering work on surface-induced alignment of liquid crystals, performed by Lehmann [1], Grandjean [2], Mauguin [3], Chatelain [4], and others [5], scientist have been looking for the answer to the question: why do certain surfaces align liquid crystals and others not'? The answer to this question has become even more important with the advent of modern liquid crystal display technologies, that are based on re­ liable and technologically controllable surface alignment of liquid crystals, used in a variety of electrooptic devices, such as liquid crystal displays, light modulators, optical shutters, switches, holographic systems, etc. During the last decade, the progress in the technology of liquid crystal devices, as well as the discovery of a variety of novel liquid crystalline phases have triggered a considerable and intense scientific interest in the microscopic origin of surface alignment. Fortunately, this renewed scientific and techno­ logical interest was accompanied by the advent of modern, surface sensitive experimental techniques, that have been successfully used in the study of liquid crystal interfaces. Whereas a decade ago the mechanisms of surface alignment were'poorly understood', nowadays we can claim that we do un­ derstand most of the'mysteries'of the surface alignment of liquid crystals.

This book deals with three related areas having both fundamental and technological interest. In the first part, the objective is to provide a bird's­ eye view on structure in polymeric solids. This is then complemented by a chapter, directly technological in its emphasis, dealing with the influence of processing on polymeric materials. In spite of the technological interest, this leads to some of the current fundamental theory. Part II, concerned with liquid crystals, starts with a discussion of the physics of the various types of material, and concludes with a treatment of optical applications. Again, aspects of the theory are stressed though this part is basically phenomenological in character. In Part III, an account is given first of the use of chemical-bonding arguments in understanding the electronic structure of low-dimensional solids, followed by a comprehensive treatment of the influence of dimen­ sionality on phase transitions. A brief summary of dielectric screening in low-dimensional solids follows. Space-charge layers are then treated, including semiconductor inversion layers. Effects of limited dimensionality on superconductivity are also emphasized. Part IV concludes the volume with two specialized topics: electronic structure of biopolymers, and topological defects and disordered systems. The Editors wish to acknowledge that this book had its origins in the material presented at a course organized by the International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Trieste.

The self-contained properties of discotic liquid crystals (DLCs) render them powerful functional materials for many semiconducting device applications and models for energy and charge migration in self-organized dynamic functional soft materials. The past three decades have seen tremendous interest in this area, fueled primarily by the possibility

Liquid crystal displays were discovered in the 1960s, and today we continue to enjoy the benefits of that fundamental discovery and its translation into a wide variety of products. Like liquid crystals, polymers are unusual materials, and have similarly enjoyed a great deal of research attention because of their vast applications and uses and compl

This book by Lev M. Blinov is ideal to guide researchers from their very first encounter with liquid crystals to the level where they can perform independent experiments on liquid crystals with a thorough understanding of their behaviour also in relation to the theoretical framework. Liquid crystals can be found everywhere around us. They are used in virtually every display device, whether it is for domestic appliances of for specialized technological instruments. Their finely tunable optical properties make them suitable also for thermo-sensing and laser technologies. There are many monographs written by prominent scholars on the subject of liquid crystals. The majority of them presents the subject in great depth, sometimes focusing on a particular research aspect, and in general they require a significant level of prior knowledge. In contrast, this books aims at an audience of advanced undergraduate and graduate students in physics, chemistry and materials science. The book consists of three parts: the first part, on structure, starts from the fundamental principles underlying the structure of liquid crystals, their rich phase behaviour and the methods used to study them; the second part, on physical properties, emphasizes the influence of anisotropy on all aspects of liquid crystals behaviour; the third, focuses on electro-optics, the most important properties from the applications standpoint. This part covers only the main effects and illustrates the underlying principles in greater detail. Professor Lev M. Blinov has had a long carrier as an experimentalist. He made major contributions in the field of ferroelectric mesophases. In 1985 he received the USSR state prize for investigations of electro-optical effects in liquid crystals for spatial light modulators. In 1999 he was awarded the Frederiks medal of the Soviet Liquid Crystal Society and in 2000 he was honoured with the G. Gray silver medal of the British Liquid Crystal Society. He has held many visiting academic positions in universities and laboratories across Europe and in Japan.

This publication, in two volumes, is devoted to the scientific impact of the work of Nobel Laureate, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century. It covers the important fields for which de Gennes was renowned: solid state (magnetism and superconductivity), macroscopic random media and percolation, supersolids, liquid crystals, polymers, adhesion and friction, and biophysics.The book brings together internationally renowned experts to contribute their perspectives on the significance of de Gennes'works. They have each selected a definitive paper, which gives the state of the field at the time the paper was published, highlights the paper's importance and provides an analysis of the development of the field right up to the modern day. The insightful perspectives of these scientists make the book both unique and intriguing.

This publication, in two volumes, is devoted to the scientific impact of the work of Nobel Laureate, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century. It covers the important fields for which de Gennes was renowned: solid state (magnetism and superconductivity), macroscopic random media and percolation, supersolids, liquid crystals, polymers, adhesion and friction, and biophysics.The book brings together internationally renowned experts to contribute their perspectives on the significance of de Gennes'works. They have each selected a definitive paper, which gives the state of the field at the time the paper was published, highlights the paper's importance and provides an analysis of the development of the field right up to the modern day. The insightful perspectives of these scientists make the book both unique and intriguing.This is the second volume devoted to soft matter and biophysics.

'Thermotropic Liquid Crystals: Recent Advances'covers developments in the field of thermotropic liquid crystals and their functional importance. In addition it presents advances related to different sub-areas pertinent to this interdisciplinary area of research. This text brings together research from synthetic scientists and spectroscopists and attempts to bridge the gaps between these two areas. Recent studies have reported a plethora of novel mesogenic molecules which triggered new interest in this area of research. Use of design concepts such as microphase segregation, non-covalent interactions, dipole-dipole interactions and shape anisotropy enabled the incorporation of any chemical structure into a liquid crystal. As a result, a range of exciting molecules such as columnar liquid crystals that lack side chains, liquid crystalline dendrimers, and unusually shaped amphiphilic molecules have been made. Characterization of these surprising molecules poses a tremendous challenge to existing physical techniques. This comprehensive text has chapters covering the applications of high-resolution methods, such as solid-state NMR, that have been used to understand the high-resolution structure, dynamics, orientation, and orientational order of these molecules in various phases. This book will prove to be an invaluable resource to students, researchers, and academics active in Chemistry, Material Science, and Nano-science programs. It will also be of interest to Scientists from industries that focus on this research.

Based on graduate lectures given by the authors, Smectic and Columnar Liquid Crystals: Concepts and Physical Properties Illustrated by Experiments examines lamellar (smectic) and columnar liquid crystals, which, in addition to orientational order, possess 1D, 2D or 3D positional order. Topics include rheology and plasticity, ferroelectricity, analogies with superconductors, hexatic order and 2D-melting, equilibrium shapes, facetting, and the Mullins-Sekerka instability, as well as phase transitions in free films and membrane vibrations. Nematic and cholesteric liquid crystals are covered by the authors in a separate volume entitled Nematic and Cholesteric Liquid Crystals: Concepts and Physical Properties Illustrated by Experiments.

Alignment phenomena are characteristic of liquid crystalline materials, and understanding them is critically important in understanding the essential features and behavior of liquid crystals and the performance of Liquid Crystal Devices (LCDs). Furthermore, in LCD production lines, the alignment process is of practical importance. Alignment Technologies and Applications of Liquid Crystal Devices demonstrates both the fundamental and practical aspects of alignment phenomena in liquid crystals. The physical basis of alignment phenomena is first introduced in order to aid the understanding of the various physical phenomena observed in the interface between liquid crystalline materials and alignment layer surfaces. Methods for the characterization of surfaces, which induce the alignment phenomena, and of the alignment layer itself are introduced. These methods are useful for the research of liquid crystalline materials and devices in academic research as well as in industry. In the practical sections, the alignment methods used in the LCD production lines are introduced with various other trials for the alignment technologies. LCD performances are also discussed in relation to alignment phenomena. The authors have a wide range of experience in both academic research and in industry. This book will be of interest to researchers and engineers working in the LCD industry, and for physics and chemistry researchers studying liquid crystalline materials.

Liquid crystal science underlies the technology of about half the current display technology by value, an industry now worth some $10 billion per annum worldwide. The fundamental science straddles the disciplines of chemistry, physics, engineering, mathematics and computer science. Among liquid crystal scientists today there is much interest in the historical process that has brought the subject to its present level. The historical roots lie in the years following 1888, again in the interwar years, and finally in the late 60s and 70s.This book has collected important papers in the development of liquid crystal science into one reference volume. The collection is divided into sections, each of which is prefaced by a brief commentary, referring to the historic-scientific context of the time. Some of these papers are available for the first time in English. More modern papers carry a short commentary from the original author, offering recollections of the context in which the work was carried out and what its impact has been.Crystals that Flow is aimed at liquid crystal scientists- from whatever background- physics, mathematics, chemistry, engineering or computer science. Historians of science will also find this a useful reference.

Liquid crystals are partially ordered systems without a rigid, long-range structure. The study of these materials covers a wide area: chemical structure, physical properties and technical applications. Due to their dual nature — anisotropic physical properties of solids and rheological behavior of liquids — and easy response to externally applied electric, magnetic, optical and surface fields liquid crystals are of greatest potential for scientific and technological applications. The subject has come of age and has achieved the status of being a very exciting interdisciplinary field of scientific and industrial research.This book is an outgrowth of the enormous advances made during the last three decades in both our understanding of liquid crystals and our ability to use them in applications. It presents a systematic, self-contained and up-to-date overview of the structure and properties of liquid crystals. It will be of great value to graduates and research workers in condensed matter physics, chemical physics, biology, materials science, chemical and electrical engineering, and technology from a materials science and physics viewpoint of liquid crystals.

Objects that differ from their mirror images, such as the left and right hands, play an important role in physics at all lengths scales, from elementary particles to macroscopic systems. The handedness, or chirality, of molecules in liquid crystals has a remarkable influence on the macroscopic physical properties of these systems, including the appearance of new phases. Indeed, the majority of optical applications of liquid crystals is due to chiral structures, namely the thermochromic effect of cholesteric liquid crystals, the optical activity in twisted nematic liquid crystal displays, and the ferroelectric and antiferroelectric switching of smectic liquid crystals.This book describes the main aspects of chirality in liquid crystals, and points out some of the open questions of current research. The chapters, each by an expert in the field, review the highlights of the important topics and representative questions in the field of chiral liquid crystals.

This book is a collection of 13 articles, written by experts, on different aspects of the physics and applications of liquid crystals. In addition to giving self-contained review articles with good bibliography, the authors have discussed the anticipated or highly important and desirable breakthroughs in the near future in their respective fields. The book should provide readers with a good starting point, insight, and an indicator of what current important problems are. Good researchers should benefit in fine tuning their efforts to test the ideas put forward by the authors.

This volume contains 19 review articles, written by leading experts in the field of neutron scattering, NMR, dielectric spectroscopy, ferroelectricity, liquid crystal polymers as well as related subjects. The articles cover a broad range of topics which are currently the center of focus and interest in this field. The book will be useful for experienced researchers as well as students and those who want to enter the field. Apart from the fact that such a publication covers a gap in the literature, there is also a personal actuality. This volume will be devoted to Professor L Bata, who started the liquid crystal research in Hungary some 25 years ago and who is still head of the department at KFKI today. He initiated a lot of new subjects in the field and supported many young scientists during these years. He is celebrating his 60th birthday this year.

This text relies on only introductory level physics and chemistry as the foundation for understanding liquid crystal science. Liquid crystals combine the material properties of solids with the flow properties of fluids. As such they have provided the foundation for a revolution in low- power, flat-panel display technology LCDs. In this book, the essential elements of liquid crystal science are introduced and explained from the perspectives of both the chemist and the physicist.; The text begins with an historical account of the discovery of liquid crystals and continues with a description of how different phases are generated and how different molecular architectures affect liquid crystalline properties. The rest of the book is concerned with understanding and explaining the properties of the various types of liquid crystals, and in the final part of the book, the technology of LCDs is discussed and illustrated.