This book focuses on the development of liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and liquid crystal materials (LCs) in Japan. The Committee of Organic Materials Research for Information Sciences of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) planned the book to document essential LCD innovations and developments since the beginnings of the field-effect LCD technology in 1970. The book illustrates the remarkable effort and progress behind those flat, lightweight, and high-information-content LCDs that have become the indispensable human–machine interface for virtually all electronic devices. In contrast to other publications on this topic, the book illustrates the interdisciplinary character of the LCD technology and its crucial importance for technological progress of the field far beyond displays. It also gives insights into breakthrough innovations not revealed in other publications. Moreover, prospects for the development of LC research toward new fields of applications are provided. In line with its interdisciplinary character, the book targets researchers in basic science as well as engineers and researchers in industry.

The confluence of the fields of liquid crystals and biomedical engineering is resulting in remarkable interdisciplinary research. This book focuses on the potential for inherently translational research in one field of engineering to radically alter the scope of another. The text reviews the exciting advances being made in displays, spectroscopy, sensors and diagnostics, biomimicking, actuators and lasers with regards to liquid crystalline materials, and biomedicine. The liquid crystal field ? which has delivered revolutionary devices in the display, optics, and telecommunications industries ? is now poised to make significant inroads into biology, medicine, and biomedical engineering.

This book reviews comprehensively the technological, scientific, artistic and medical applications of liquid crystals. It starts with the basics of liquid crystals and covers electro-optical, thermo-optical, colour, polymeric, lyotropic, and scientific applications of liquid crystalline materials. It discusses the fabrication and operational principles of a full range of liquid crystal displays including dynamic scattering, twisted nematic, supertwisted nematic, dichroic, smectic A, ferroelectric, polymer dispersed, light valve, active matrix, etc., in detail. It also covers the emerging applications of liquid crystals such as optical computing, nonlinear optics, decorative and visual arts. The detailed chapters on classification, theory, chemical structure, physical properties and surface alignment of liquid crystals facilitate the basic understanding of the science behind LCDs and other uses of liquid crystals. The chapters on liquid crystal polymers and lyotropic liquid crystals, give deep insight into these areas. The potential uses and applications are also described in detail.