How do liquid crystals help operate my TV? – Denison University

An interactive session led by Dr. Joe Reczek

Professor, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at Denison University

 

Lecture Location: Herrick Hall

Hands-On Laboratory Location: Ebaugh Hall

Locations subject to change, updates will be provided closer to event date.

Why are TV and smart phone screens made of something called ‘liquid crystals’, and what does that mean?!

‘Materials’ is a general word to describe what all the stuff around us is made of.  For decades, certain chemists called ‘materials scientists’ have been inventing new types of materials to make our TVs flatter, our phones smaller and brighter, our cars safer, our computers faster, and thousands of other great things that we take for granted every day.  Many materials in technology are made of something called ‘liquid crystals’.  As their name may imply, liquid crystals are sometimes like solids, and sometimes like liquids!  These amazing materials have allowed for many great inventions, including flat-screen TVs and the small screens on phones and portable game systems.  We will learn what liquid crystals are and why they are so important in our lives, and see how current research may lead to a TV that you can roll up and take with you like a poster.  Then, we will move to the chemistry lab, where we will work with some real liquid crystals, and see firsthand why they are so cool!