Chemistry of Discotic Liquid Crystals: From Monomers to Polymers

Compiling the scattered literature into a single seminal work, this book describes the basic design principles, synthesis, and mesomorphic properties of discotic liquid crystals. Of fundamental importance as models for the study of energy and charge migration in self-organized systems, discotic liquid crystals find functional application as one-dimensional conductors, photoconductors, light emitting diodes, photovoltaic solar cells, field-effect transistors, and gas sensors. This book highlights the scientific concepts behind the hierarchical self- assembly of these disc-shaped molecules alongside their commercial production and experimental and applied use in nanotechnology and other emerging fields.