The Materials Research Society Series- Liquid-Crystalline Supermolecules: Hierarchical Structures, Symmetry Breaking, and Biological Activities

This book explores the world of liquid crystals created by strategically designed supermolecules. Addressing fundamental aspects of liquid crystal material science, it explores new applications and highlights the interdisciplinary nature of liquid crystals, which range from information displays to medical uses. These new worlds enable polar order in anisotropic fluids, alignment-free high-contrast liquid crystal displays, and chiral materials generated in an achiral system. They also enable selective antitumor activity. Additionally, the book presents significant basic scientific findings, such as dissipative structures through fluctuations and spontaneous mirror symmetry breaking. Topics include hierarchical and dissipative structures, ferroelectric liquid crystals, blue phases, supramolecular chirality transfer, and biological liquid crystals. An introduction to liquid crystals is included to facilitate understanding of the aforementioned cutting-edge fields. Distinguished by its unique perspective and insight on an emerging topic, this book serves as an authoritative guide for researchers and graduate students.