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Center researchers have found liquid crystal phases in systems of circular
or spherical particles, a surprise since liquid crystals usually appear in
molecules shaped like sticks or plates. The trick is to give hard particles
(purple) a soft repulsive "halo" (green) The resulting phase behavior is
extraordinarily rich, including "lyotropic" liquid crystal phases and a
variety of complex modulated crystal phases. These findings dramatically
expand the range of possible modes of colloidal self-assembly, and suggest
applications in the development of novel photonic crystals and functional
nanostructures.
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 Halon Liquid Crystals |
