Premium
Liquid‐Crystalline Ordering as a Concept in Materials Science: From Semiconductors to Stimuli‐Responsive Devices
Author(s) -
Fleischmann EvaKristina,
Zentel Rudolf
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201300371
Subject(s) - liquid crystal , liquid crystalline , materials science , polymer , nanotechnology , fabrication , semiconductor , anisotropy , substrate (aquarium) , organic semiconductor , chemical physics , optoelectronics , chemistry , composite material , optics , pathology , medicine , oceanography , alternative medicine , physics , geology
While the unique optical properties of liquid crystals (LCs) are already well exploited for flat‐panel displays, their intrinsic ability to self‐organize into ordered mesophases, which are intermediate states between crystal and liquid, gives rise to a broad variety of additional applications. The high degree of molecular order, the possibility for large scale orientation, and the structural motif of the aromatic subunits recommend liquid‐crystalline materials as organic semiconductors, which are solvent‐processable and can easily be deposited on a substrate. The anisotropy of liquid crystals can further cause a stimuli‐responsive macroscopic shape change of cross‐linked polymer networks, which act as reversibly contracting artificial muscles. After illustrating the concept of liquid‐crystalline order in this Review, emphasis will be placed on synthetic strategies for novel classes of LC materials, and the design and fabrication of active devices.