Soap, Science, and Flat-Screen TVs: A History of Liquid Crystals - Hardcover

Dunmur, David; Sluckin, Tim

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0199549400 ISBN 13: 9780199549405

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2010

Synopsis

The terms 'liquid crystal' or 'liquid crystal display' (LCD) are well-known in the context of flat-screen televisions, but the properties and history of liquid crystals are little understood. This book tells the story of liquid crystals, from their controversial discovery at the end of the nineteenth century, to their eventual acceptance as another state of matter to rank alongside gases, liquids and solids. As their story unfolds, the scientists involved and their works are put into illuminating broader socio-political contexts. In recent years, liquid crystals have had a major impact on the display industry, culminating in the now widely available flat-screen televisions; this development is described in detail over three chapters, and the basic science behind it is explained in simple terms accessible to a general reader. New applications of liquid crystals in materials, bio-systems, medicine and technology are also explained.

The authors' approach to the subject defines a new genre of popular science books. The historical background to the scientific discoveries is given in detail, and the personal communications between the scientists involved are explored. The book tells the story of liquid crystals, but it also shows that scientific discovery and exploitation relies on human interactions, and the social and political environments in which they work.

About this title

About the Author

David Dunmur received his undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from the University of Oxford. After 3 years as a research fellow in the newly formed Department of Theoretical Chemistry, University of Bristol, he was appointed in 1968 as a lecturer in Chemistry at the University of Sheffield, where he became Head of the Department of Chemistry from 1993 to 1996. He was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of California in 1980. In 1999 he received the George Gray Medal from the British Liquid Crystal Society. From 1996 to his retirement in 2005, he was a research Professor in chemical physics (liquid crystals) in the School of Chemistry, University of Southampton.

Tim Sluckin was born in London in 1951, and educated in Cambridge and Nottingham, where he received his Ph.D in 1975 for a thesis on the theoretical physics of liquid helium. After several postdoctoral appointments in the USA and in the UK, he was appointed a lecturer in applied mathematics at the University of Southampton (UK) in 1981. Since 1995 he has been Professor of Applied Mathematical Physics at the University of Southampton. He has also spent extended periods of sabbatical leave abroad, including spells in France (Grenoble), Italy (Milan) and Israel (Haifa). His main research interests have been in mathematical and physical aspects of liquid crystals, but he also has interests in other fluid phenomena. Another of his interests is mathematical population biology, including, in particular, problems to do with human prehistory. More recently he has also published significantly in the history of science.

Review

"Full of charming and not widely known historical anecdotes, this book describes the drama of liquid crystals science from its early days to modern technical applications. One of the most informative and entertaining pieces of popular science history I have seen in years." -- Alexander Y. Grosberg, New York University

"Visual communication became transportable through the discovery of that strange state of matter, the liquid crystal. This history is a fascinating account of that discovery and its development and gives considerable insight into the social mechanisms of science in general. The authors do not evade the science itself, treating it lightly but appropriately. Altogether, a detailed, informative, and enthralling account of a crucial part of techonlogical and scientific history." -- Peter Atkins, Oxford University

"Dunmur and Sluckin tell an absorbing and colourful story of an area of science that is both rich at the fundamental level and that has brought some of the major new technologies of our age. They follow the twists and turns, and the conflicts, of the science and of the people pursuing it. It is satisfying too when the authors step back from time to time to give the modern view and therefore the resolution of the difficulties of the early protagonists. Most enjoyable!" -- Mark Warner, University of Cambridge

Listed in Science Book News

"Makes for fascinating and entertaining reading." -- SCIENCE Magazine

Rated one of the top 5 books reviewed in 2011 by Physics Today

'... engaging monograph ... I recommend this cultured chronicle of the people and history of a delicate state of matter that has had a profound influence on the technologies of communications and displays.' Derry W. Jones, Contemporary Physics

'This is a truly stimulating look at the history and science of a little-understood phase of matter and a material that affects our lives every day [...] a truly useful addition to the pedagogical literature on liquid crystals.' Peter Collings, Physics Today

'It provides a perceptive insight into the evolution of the important area of soft matter and the development from this of an impressive display technology.' Geoffrey Luckhurst, Chemistry World

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 0199549400
• ISBN 13: 9780199549405
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 366