A5008532845- Liquid Crystal Research Advancements
- Photonic Crystals and Applications
- Advanced Materials and Mechanics
- Ferroelectric and Piezoelectric Materials
- Surfactants and Colloidal Systems
- Plant Reproductive Biology
- Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
- Force Microscopy Techniques and Applications
- Molecular spectroscopy and chirality
- Dielectric materials and actuators
- Advanced Sensor and Energy Harvesting Materials
- Supramolecular Self-Assembly in Materials
- Mechanical and Optical Resonators
- Photochromic and Fluorescence Chemistry
- Pickering emulsions and particle stabilization
- Plant and animal studies
- Adhesion, Friction, and Surface Interactions
- Polymer composites and self-healing
- Vibration Control and Rheological Fluids
- Nonlinear Optical Materials Studies
Jožef Stefan Institute
2013-2025
University of Ljubljana
2012
The current development of soft shape-memory materials often results in that are typically limited to the synthesis thin-walled specimens and usually rely on complex, low-yield manufacturing techniques fabricate macro-sized, solid three-dimensional objects. However, such geometrical limitations slow production rates can significantly hinder their practical implementation. In this work, we demonstrate a composite material be effortlessly molded into arbitrary shapes or sizes. is made from...
The stabilization of liquid-crystalline blue phases is recently attracting considerable interest because the envisioned applications in fast optical displays and tunable photonic crystals. We report on effect surface-functionalized graphene nanosheets phase range a chiral liquid crystal. Calorimetric measurements, reproducible heating cooling, demonstrate that resulting soft nanocomposite exhibits an increased temperature stability for minute concentration dispersed graphene. impact stronger...
Liquid-crystalline blue phases are attracting significant interest due to their potential for applications related tunable photonic crystals and fast optical displays. In this work a brief theoretical model is presented accounting the impact of anisotropic nanoparticles on phase stability region. This tested by means high-resolution calorimetric measurements effect anisotropic, surface-functionalized MoS2 range chiral liquid crystal. The addition these effectively increases temperature...
Materials with large caloric effect have the promise of realizing solid-state refrigeration which has potential to be more efficient and environmentally friendly compared current cooling technologies. Recently, focus effects investigations shifted towards soft materials. An overview recent direct measurements electrocaloric (ECE) in a composite mixture liquid crystal nanoparticles (NPs) elastocaloric (eC) main-chain elastomers is given. In mixtures 12CB functionalized CdSSe NPs, an ECE...
Abstract With the increased environmental awareness, search for environmentally friendlier heat-management techniques has been topic of many scientific studies. The caloric materials with large effects, such as electrocaloric (EC) and elastocaloric (eC) have interest due to their potential realize new solid-state refrigeration devices. Recently, properties soft materials, liquid crystals (LCs) LC elastomers (LCEs), are getting more in focus investigations, stimulated by effects observed...
We report on the effect of reduced-graphene oxide nanosheets decorated by CoPt nanoparticles blue phase range a chiral liquid crystal. By means high-resolution ac calorimetry and polarizing optical microscopy, it is demonstrated that small concentration these induces stabilization single structure in comparison to three phases existing pure compound. The results are compared with other crystal-dispersed graphene studies, and, moreover, short theoretical discussion included.
We report on the widening of blue phase range induced by surface-functionalised laponite nanoplatelets dispersed in a chiral liquid crystal. The results are obtained means high-resolution ac calorimetry and optical microscopy they reproducible upon heating cooling, identifying thermodynamically stable phases. It is shown that target mostly cubic structure I increase its temperature stability factor two. present agreement with recent findings anisotropic nanoparticles tend to effectively stabilise I.
Liquid crystals hosting nanoparticles comprise a fascinating research field, ranging from fundamental aspects of phase transitions to applications in optics and photonics. Liquid-crystalline phases exhibit topological defects that can be used for self-assembly periodical arrays and, at the same time, increase stability range liquid-crystalline phases. This has been experimentally demonstrated over past few years case blue are present some strongly chiral liquid crystals. Experimental results...
Supported lipid bilayers (SLBs) are low-complexity biomimetic membranes, serving as popular experimental platforms to study membrane organization and transfer, uptake of nanoparticles biomolecules, many other processes. Quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring has been utilized probe the influence several parameters on quality SLBs formed Au- SiO2-coated sensors. The aqueous medium (i.e., buffer type) adsorption temperature, above below melting point, is neatly explored for...
A high-resolution calorimetric study has been performed in the vicinity of isotropic to smectic-A phase transition smectic liquid crystalline elastomers. The is weakly first order for both investigated samples. Nevertheless, different features have observed when crosslinking density changed, such as substantial broadening and decrease involved latent heat. latter sluggishly released a range few K.
We report on high-resolution calorimetry and small-angle X-ray scattering measurements along the Smectic-A to chiral Smectic-C* phase transition of liquid crystal 4-(2-methyl butyl) phenyl 4-n-octylbiphenyl-4-carboxylate with dispersed, CoPt nanoparticle-coated reduced-graphene oxide nanosheets. The temperature dependence heat capacity smectic layer spacing are obtained in vicinity transition. Though no remarkable pretransitional effects present, critical fits show a crossover from...
Materials exhibiting a large caloric effect could lead to the development of new generation heat-management technologies that will have better energy efficiency and be potentially more environmentally friendly. The focus materials investigations has shifted recently from solid-state towards soft materials, such as liquid crystals crystalline elastomers. It been shown electrocaloric exceeding 6 K can observed in smectic crystals. Here, we report on significant elastocaloric response by direct...
We investigate experimentally the impact of roughly spherular magnetic maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) nanoparticles (NPs) on stabilization lattices topological line defects in liquid crystals (LCs). For this purpose, we exploit chiral CE8 LCs, which bulk exhibit blue phases (BPs) possessing (disclinations) orientational order. Furthermore, NPs stabilize twist-grain boundary A (TGBA) and (NL*) phase screw (dislocations) translational Appropriately surface-decorated these qualitatively different...