Introduction to Liquid Crystals

1 Liquid Crystal Mesophases.- 1. Mesophases.- 1.1 Disordered Crystal Mesophases.- 1.2 Ordered Fluid Mesophases.- 2. Types of Liquid Crystals.- 2.1 Thermotropic Liquid Crystals.- 2.2 Lyotropic Liquid Crystals.- 3. Classification According to Molecular Order.- 3.1 Nematic Order.- 3.2 Cholesteric Order.- 3.3 Smectic Order.- 4. Polymorphism in Thermotropic Liquid Crystals.- 5. Molecular Structure of Thermotropic Mesogens.- 6. Properties of Ordered Fluid Mesophases.- 2 Structure-Property Relationships in Thermotropic Organic Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Organic Mesophases.- 3. General Structural Features of Mesogens.- 4. Effects of Structure on Mesophase Thermal Stability.- 5. Homologous Series.- 6. Materials for Device Applications.- 7. Summary.- 3 Introduction to the Molecular Theory of Nematic Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Symmetry and the Order Parameter.- 3. The Molecular Potential.- 4. The Orientational Distribution function.- 5. Thermodynamics of the Nematic Phase.- 6. Fluctuations at Tc.- 4 Generalized Mean Field Theory of Nematic Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. The Pair Interaction Potential.- 3. The Mean Field Approximation.- 4. Statistical Thermodynamics.- 5. Nature of the Parameters UL.- 6. The Need for Higher Order Terms in V1.- 5 Hard Rod Model of the Nematic-Isotropic Phase Transition.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Derivation of Onsager Equations.- 3. Solution of Onsager Equations in a Simplified Case.- 6 Nematic Order: The Long Range Orientational Distribution Function.- 1. Introduction.- 2. The Orientational Distribution function.- 3. Macroscopic Definition of Nematic Order.- 4. Relationship Between Microscopic and Macroscopic Order Parameters.- 5. Experimental Measurements.- 5.1 Measurements of ?P2(cos ?)? Based on Macroscopic Anisotropies.- 5.2 Measurements of ?P2(cos ?)? Based on Microscopic Anisotropies.- 6. Experimental Data.- 7 Introduction to the Molecular Theory of Smectic-A Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Symmetry, Structure and Order Parameters.- 3. Phase Diagrams.- 4. The Molecular Potential.- 5. Statistical Thermodynamics.- 6. Numerical Results.- 7. Improved Theory.- 8. The Possibility of Second-Order Transitions.- 8 Introduction to the Elastic Continuum Theory of Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. The Fundamental Equation of the Continuum Theory of Liquid Crystals.- 3. Applications of the Elastic Continuum Theory.- 3.1 Twisted Nematic Cell.- 3.2 Magnetic Coherence Length.- 3.3 Freedericksz Transition.- 3.4 Field-Induced Cholesteric-Nematic Transition.- 4. Concluding Remarks.- 9 Electrohydrodynamic Instabilities in Nematic Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Nature of the Instability and the Balance of Forces.- 3. Dielectric Response.- 4. Hydrodynamic Effects.- 5. The Boundary Value Problem in the Conduction Regime.- 6. The Torque Balance Equation.- 7. Numerical Results and Comparison with Experiment.- 8. Range of Applicability.- 10 The Landau-de Gennes Theory of Liquid Crystal Phase Transitions.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Derivation of the Fundamental Equations of the Landau-de Gennes Theory.- 2.1 The Partition function.- 2.2 The Landau Expansion.- 2.3 Generalization of the Landau Expansion to Liquid Crystals.- 3. Thermodynamic Properties of Liquid Crystal Phase Transitions.- 4. Fluctuation Phenomena.- 4.1 Homophase Fluctuations in the Isotropic Phase.- 4.2 Heterophase Fluctuations.- 5. Observation of Fluctuations Using Light Scattering.- 6. Magnetic Birefringence and the Paranematic Susceptibility.- Appendix A.- Appendix B.- 11 Introduction to the Optical Properties of Cholesteric and Chiral Nematic Liquid Crystals.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Maxwell's Equations.- 3. Discussion.- 4. Conclusion.- Appendix A.- Appendix B.- 12 Liquid-Crystal Displays-Packaging and Surface Treatments.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Packaging.- 3. Electrodes.- 4. Surface Orientation.- 5. Influence of Packaging on Surface Orientation.- 6. Summary.- 13 Pressure Effects in Sealed Liquid-Crystal Cells.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Effect of Temperature Change.- 3. Effect of Glass Thickness.- 4. The Case of a Rigid Container.- 14 Liquid-Crystal Displays-Electro-optic Effects and Addressing Techniques.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Electro-optic Phenomena.- 2.1 Field-Induced Birefringence.- 2.2 Twisted Nematic Effect.- 2.3 Guest-Host Effect.- 2.4 Cholesteric-to-Nematic Transition.- 2.5 Dynamic Scattering.- 2.6 Storage Mode.- 2.7 Transient Response.- 3. Display-Related Parameters.- 3.1 Display Life.- 3.2 Temperature Dependence.- 4. Addressing Techniques.- 4.1 Matrix Addressing.- 4.2 Beam Scanning.- 5. Summary.- 15 Liquid-Crystal Optical Waveguides.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Guided Optical Waves.- 3. Phase Matching and Coupling.- 4. Scattering.- 5. Liquid Crystal Waveguides.- 6. Conclusions.- 16 The Electro-optic Transfer Function in Nematic Liquids.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Geometrical Considerations in Optical Measurements.- 3. Field Effects-Negative Dielectric Anisotropy.- 4. Field Effects-Positive Dielectric Anisotropy.- 5. Hydrodynamic Effects-Diffraction by Domains.- 6. Dynamic Scattering.- 7. Photoconductor Control.- 17 Electrochemistry in Nematic Liquid-Crystal Solvents.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Equilibrium Properties of Bulk Solutions.- 3. Electrochemical Reactions.- 18 Lyotropic Liquid Crystals and Biological Membranes: The Crucial Role of Water.- 1. Introduction.- 2. Lyotropic Liquid Crystals.- 2.1 Constituents of Lyotropics.- 2.2 Micelles.- 2.3 Structure of Lyotropics.- 3. Biological Membranes.- 3.1 Constituents of Membranes.- 3.2 Structures of Membranes.- 4. Interaction of Amphiphilic Compounds with Water.- 4.1 Solubility of Hydrocarbons in Water.- 4.2 Solubility of Ionized Species in Water.- 4.3 Aggregation of Amphiphilic Compounds.- 5. Conclusion.