Liquid Crystals, Physics and Applications (B-KUL-H08F1A)

7.5 ECTSEnglishSecond termCannot be taken as part of an examination contractCannot be taken as part of a credit contract
N.
Extern Chalmers tekniska högskola
POC Nanowetenschappen en nanotechnologie

Activities

7.5 ects. Liquid Crystals, Physics and Applications (B-KUL-H08F1a)

7.5 ECTSEnglishSecond term
N.
POC Nanowetenschappen en nanotechnologie

This new course is based on the former course FFY070 Liquid crystals - physics and applications (4.5 points / 3cu). In the new course (7.5 points) the amount of material is increased, especially regarding LC applications. The experimental part is significantly expanded through a lab-project, in which the students in depth study individually choosen subjects within the frame of the course.
 
Most people are familiar with the fact that matter can exist in three different states: solid, liquid and gas. However, this is a simplification, and under extreme conditions other forms of matter can exist, e.g. plasma at very high temperatures or superfluid helium at very low temperatures. But we do not have to go to these extreme conditions to find new forms of order in matter. In liquid crystals, which are anisotropic fluids, the molecular order lies between those of the isotropic liquid and the crystal and the classification of liquid crystals is based on their degrees of orientational and positional order. From a basic physics point of view these materials are of large interest and have contributed to the modern understanding of phase transitions and critical phenomena, and to the knowledge about order phenomena in one, two, and three dimensions.
To common people liquid crystals are today almost synonomous to flat panel displays (Liquid Crystal Displays, LCDs) for TVs, computers, mobile phones, and other electronic equipment. But there is also a rapid development of other types of application, for instance in telecommunication, pattern recognition, real time holography, non-mechanical beam steering etc.
 
Liquid crystals consitute a unique form of soft matter and are becoming more and more important also in pure materials science in the development of polymer materials and biomaterials. The existence of life is directly dependent on self-organizing soft matter and here liquid crystalline systems are very important. One example is our cell membranes which consist of so-called lyotropic liquid crystals.
 
The course will give a basic understanding of the physics and different applications of liquid crystals. The content ranges from the history of liquid crystal science, from the first observations in the late nineteenth century, via the development of theories of the liquid crystalline state, the development of liquid crystal displays and examples of today s state of the art research. After about 30 years of strong focus on liquid crystal displays, a large part of the liquid crystal research is today shifting towards nanoscience, colloidal systems, biological systems and, on the applicational side, towards photonics and microwave electronics.
The course will stress on how knowledge in optics, thermodynamics, electromagnetism, vector analysis, symmetry analysis, etc. constitutes the basis for the very rapid development of liquid crystal displays and devices that we use every day. Furthermore, the course will through laboratory projects and demonstrations give an introduction to the manufacturing of liquid crystal displays.
 
1. Physical properties of liquid crystals and basic theory
Phases and phase transisions; anisotropic materials; symmetry aspects; optics; electrooptics of liquid crystals; ferro-, and antiferroelectric liquid crystals; examples of LCs in nanoscience, photonics and microwave electronics, overview of the research front.
 
2. Liquid crystal applicationsLCDs, present and future displays, demonstrations, manufacturing of devices, non-display applications, thermochromics, kevlar

Copies of lecture notes.
Collings&Hird: Introduction to Liquid Crystals, Taylor&Francis 1997 (Recommended);
Also parts of:
S.T.Lagerwall, P.G.Rudquist, D.S.Hermann: "Liquid crystals", in Encyclopedia of optical Engineering, Marcel Dekker Inc. 2003)
J. Prost, P.G. de Gennes: The physics of liquid crystals, Oxford 1993; S.Chandrasekhar: Liquid Crystals, Cambridge 1976, second edition 1992; E.B. Priestley, P. Wojtowicz, P.Sheng: Introduction to Liquid Crystals, Plenum, NY 1975;
D.Demus et al. (editors) Handbook of Liquid Crystals, Volume 1-3, Wiley VCH, 1998; S.T.Lagerwall: Ferroelectric and Antiferroelectric Liquid Crystals, Wiley VCH 1999.

- About 15 Lectures, defining the contents of the course
- Lab project on individually choosen topics, laboratory excercises and demonstrations, cleanroom processing demonstrations
- homework assignments
http://www.elm.chalmers.se/nano/LC_course/kursindex.html for more information.

Evaluation

Evaluation: Liquid Crystals, Physics and Applications (B-KUL-H28F1a)

Type : Continuous assessment without exam during the examination period