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Crystals
Special Issues
Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions
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Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions

A special issue of Crystals (ISSN 2073-4352). This special issue belongs to the section "Liquid Crystals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (11 January 2024) | Viewed by 8761

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Yanzi Gao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Functional Materials, Institute for Advanced Materials and Technology, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, China
Interests: polymer dispersed liquid crystal films with wide temperature range and wide viewing angle for automobile; electric control color changing smart film for camouflage; anti-counterfeiting traceability materials and technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Cheng Zou

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Advanced Materials and Technology, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
Interests: liquid crystals; polymer; light-responsive and multi-stimuli-responsive smart materials and devices
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Meina Yu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute for Advanced Materials and Technology, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, China
Interests: liquid crystal; polymer; display devices; optics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Vladimir Chigrinov

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Electronic, Computer Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China
Interests: liquid crystals; electrooptics; displays; photonics; photoalignment; photopatterning
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

As a phase state, liquid crystal was first discovered more than 130 years ago. Since then, research on liquid crystal has accelerated. As our understanding of liquid crystal deepens, its role in many aspects of our lives is evermore important.

Liquid crystal is a low dimensional ordered fluid, and its molecular arrangement structure is not three-dimensional ordered, unlike crystal. Therefore, when it is affected by external fields such as electric fields, magnetic fields, temperature, and stress, its molecular orientation easily changes, and various characteristics based on the optical anisotropy of liquid crystal also change. Due to this characteristic, liquid crystal has been widely used in functional devices controlled by external fields. At the same time, different liquid crystal phases are being developed for new applications in different application scenarios: from the traditional nematic liquid crystal used for display materials, to the cholesteric liquid crystal used as anti-counterfeiting materials, to the current composite materials of different phase liquid crystals used for software robots, 5G antennas, intelligent anti-peeping films, etc.

The aim of this Special Issue is to provide a platform for researchers who are interested in liquid crystals and communicate their research progresses.

Dr. Yanzi Gao
Dr. Cheng Zou
Dr. Meina Yu
Prof. Dr. Vladimir Chigrinov
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Crystals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2100 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • liquid crystal
  • cholesteric phase
  • SmA-Ch phase transition
  • anti-counterfeiting
  • polymer dispersed liquid crystals

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

11 pages, 1539 KiB  
Article
The Universal Scaling of Dielectric Response as a Tool in the Description of a Complex Dynamic of 4′-Butyl-4-(2-methylbutoxy)azoxybenzene (4ABO5*)
by Marcin Piwowarczyk, Ewa Juszyńska-Gałązka and Mirosław Gałązka
Crystals 2024, 14(1), 95; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst14010095 - 20 Jan 2024
Viewed by 1100
Abstract
The results of dielectric relaxation spectroscopy of the chiral liquid crystal 4′-butyl-4-(2-methylbutoxy)azoxybenzene in the crystal phase are presented. The scaling procedure showed complex molecular dynamics and allows one to decompose the observed relaxation process into two closely located relaxation processes around the short [...] Read more.
The results of dielectric relaxation spectroscopy of the chiral liquid crystal 4′-butyl-4-(2-methylbutoxy)azoxybenzene in the crystal phase are presented. The scaling procedure showed complex molecular dynamics and allows one to decompose the observed relaxation process into two closely located relaxation processes around the short molecular axis. Temperature dependences of relaxation times characterizing flip-flop motions (rotation around the short molecular axis) and rotation around the long molecular axis are of the Arrhenius type. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions)
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21 pages, 9451 KiB  
Article
Design and Investigation of a Side-Chain Liquid Crystalline Polysiloxane with a Ntb-Phase-Forming Side Chain
by Wanhe Jiang and Georg H. Mehl
Crystals 2023, 13(12), 1614; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst13121614 - 21 Nov 2023
Viewed by 1208
Abstract
A new mesogenic non-symmetric dimeric monomer with a terminal olefin function, forming a twist bend nematic (Ntb) as well as a nematic (N) phase, was synthesized, using an enhanced synthetic methodology, which avoids isomerization of the terminal double bond in the [...] Read more.
A new mesogenic non-symmetric dimeric monomer with a terminal olefin function, forming a twist bend nematic (Ntb) as well as a nematic (N) phase, was synthesized, using an enhanced synthetic methodology, which avoids isomerization of the terminal double bond in the preparation of the dimer. This monomer was attached to a pentamethyldisiloxane group, resulting in the SmA LC phase behavior of the ensuing material. Linking the monomer to a siloxane main chain resulted in nematic phase behavior. Detailed studies with the Ntb phase forming dimer DTC5C7 show full miscibility of the dimer and the new LC polymer in the LC state, suggesting that the side-chain LC polymer forms a Ntb phase as the low-temperature nematic phase. Copolymerizing the monomer with a cyanobiphenyl-based monomer allows us to tune the glass transition and phase behavior further. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions)
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13 pages, 5049 KiB  
Article
Synthesis of Thiophene-Based Derivatives and the Effects of Their Molecular Structure on the Mesomorphic Behavior and Temperature Range of Liquid-Crystalline Blue Phases
by Meng Wang, He Song, Chongye Wu, Beiqi Liu, Zichen Wang and Huai Yang
Crystals 2023, 13(6), 916; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst13060916 - 6 Jun 2023
Viewed by 1312
Abstract
The development of blue-phase liquid crystal (BPLC) materials with a wide temperature range is of great significance for practical applications in the optoelectronic field. In the study, bent-core derivatives with a 3-hexyl-2,5-disubstituted thiophene central ring in the λ-shaped molecular structure were designed and [...] Read more.
The development of blue-phase liquid crystal (BPLC) materials with a wide temperature range is of great significance for practical applications in the optoelectronic field. In the study, bent-core derivatives with a 3-hexyl-2,5-disubstituted thiophene central ring in the λ-shaped molecular structure were designed and synthesized. Their mesomorphic behavior and effect on the blue-phase (BP) temperature range were investigated. Interestingly, a BP was achieved both during the heating and cooling processes by doping with a proper concentration of chiral compound into the thiophene bent-shaped molecule with high rigidity, while derivatives with fluorine atom substitution only exhibited cholesteric phase no matter how many chiral compounds were added. This result proved that BP is highly sensitive to the molecular structures of bent-shaped molecules. Moreover, the BP temperature range was broadened when adding these molecules into a BPLC host, which thus improved the BP temperature range from the initial value, no more than 4 °C, to as much as 24 °C. The experimental phenomena were reasonably explained through molecular simulation calculations. The study may provide some experimental basis and theoretical guidance for the design of novel bent-shaped molecules and BPLC material with a wide temperature range. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions)
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10 pages, 3743 KiB  
Article
Effect of Curing Temperature on the Properties of Electrically Controlled Dimming Film with Wide Working Temperature Range
by Jianjun Xu, Hui Li, Lei Guo, Zuowei Zhang, Cheng Zou, Qian Wang, Huai Yang, Xiao Wang, Meina Yu and Yanzi Gao
Crystals 2022, 12(11), 1551; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst12111551 - 30 Oct 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1737
Abstract
In this paper, a polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) film with good electro-optical properties and wide working temperature range was prepared by the UV-polymerization induced phase separation (PIPS) method by optimizing the curing temperature using a LC with wide temperature range. The investigation [...] Read more.
In this paper, a polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) film with good electro-optical properties and wide working temperature range was prepared by the UV-polymerization induced phase separation (PIPS) method by optimizing the curing temperature using a LC with wide temperature range. The investigation found that when the polymerization temperature was at the clearing point of the prepolymer/LC mixture, the film had better electro-optical properties and a high contrast ratio of 51 at 90 °C, and the rise time and decay time were respectively as fast as 241.5 ms and 1750 ms at −20 °C. This study provides further methodological guidance for the curing process of PDLC film, and promotes its application in outdoor smart windows. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions)
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12 pages, 2237 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of the Skin Permeation-Enhancing Abilities of Newly Developed Water-Soluble Self-Assembled Liquid Crystal Formulations Based on Hexosomes
by Wesam R. Kadhum, Gerard Lee See, Muqdad Alhijjaj, Mustafa M. Kadhim, Florencio Jr. Arce, Ahmed S. Al-Janabi, Reyadh R. Al-Rashidi and Anees A. Khadom
Crystals 2022, 12(9), 1238; https://doi.org/10.3390/cryst12091238 - 1 Sep 2022
Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2106
Abstract
The present study aimed to develop polyethylene glycol–liquid crystals (PEG-LC) ointment formulations, assess their formulation characteristics, and establish their biocompatibility and impact on transdermal drug administration. PEG-LC formulations were prepared using a hydrophilic molecule, p-aminobenzoic acid (PAB). Formulation characterizations such as small-angle [...] Read more.
The present study aimed to develop polyethylene glycol–liquid crystals (PEG-LC) ointment formulations, assess their formulation characteristics, and establish their biocompatibility and impact on transdermal drug administration. PEG-LC formulations were prepared using a hydrophilic molecule, p-aminobenzoic acid (PAB). Formulation characterizations such as small-angle X-ray scattering, viscosity, pH, zeta potential, and the particle sizes of the formulations were examined to determine the physicochemical properties of the prepared formulations. The drug release profile of PEG-LC ointment formulations was assessed with a dialysis membrane. In vitro skin permeation testing was performed to establish whether the PEG-LC formulations improved drug skin penetration. The MTT and comet assays were performed to assess the biocompatibility of the formulations. Our data showed that the method is effective in forming hexosome-type PEG-LC formulations and that they were biocompatible. Furthermore, the PEG-LC formulations significantly improved PAB skin penetration when compared with commercial PEG. The PEG-LC formulation is a promising carrier for the delivery of hydrophilic drugs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Liquid Crystal Phases and Phase Transitions)
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