Liquid Crystal Institute

Photo of liquid crystal elastomer

Dr. Peter Palffy-Muhoray, professor of chemical physics and member of the Liquid Crystal Institute, in the College of Arts and Sciences at Kent State University will present "Rotating nametags, rubber lasers and coin magic: short stories from the world of liquid crystals" for the Applied Mechanics Colloquia at the John A. Paulson Scho...

Kent Campus
Kent State Liquid Crystals Professor Robin Selinger examines new material that propels itself forward under the influence of light.

Scientists at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands and Kent State University in Ohio have developed a new material that can undulate and therefore propel itself forward under the influence of light. To achieve this, the scientists clamp a strip of this polymer material in a rectangular frame. When illuminated, it goes for ...

Kent Campus
Eindhoven University of Technology researcher Anne Hélène Gélébart shows the walking device. This small device is the world’s first machine to convert light directly into walking, simply using one fixed light source. (Photo credit: Bart van Overbeeke)

Scientists at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands and Kent State University have developed a new material that can undulate and therefore propel itself forward under the influence of light. To achieve this, the scientists clamp a strip of this polymer material in a rectangular frame. When illuminated, it goes for a walk a...

Several Kent State University professors in the College of Arts and Sciences have been selected to receive Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF). REU grants are designed to provide faculty with funding to create research positions and experiences specifically for undergraduate stude...

Kent State Liquid Crystals Professor Robin Selinger examines new material that propels itself forward under the influence of light.

Scientists at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands and Kent State University in Ohio have developed a new material that can undulate and therefore propel itself forward under the influence of light. To achieve this, the scientists clamp a strip of this polymer material in a rectangular frame. When illuminated, it goes for ...

Kent State Liquid Crystals Professor Robin Selinger examines new material that propels itself forward under the influence of light.

Scientists at Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands and Kent State University in Ohio have developed a new material that can undulate and therefore propel itself forward under the influence of light. To achieve this, the scientists clamp a strip of this polymer material in a rectangular frame. When illuminated, it goes for ...

Professor Torsten Hegmann

Torsten Hegmann, Ph.D., a chemical physics professor and Ohio Research Scholar in Kent State University’s Liquid Crystal Institute®, in the College of Arts and Sciences, was recently named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, one of the top publishing societies in chemistry worldwide. “It was a tremendous honor being included in ...

Robin Selinger, Ph.D., faculty member at Kent State University’s Liquid Crystal Institute, has been elected a 2016 Fellow of the American Physical Society. (Photo credit: Sterling Steves of SterlingFX Photography)

Robin Selinger, Ph.D., faculty member at the Liquid Crystal Institute in the College of Arts and Sciences at Kent State University, has been elected a 2016 Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS). Each year, only one half of one percent of APS members are elected as Fellows. Selinger was recognized for fundamental contributions in th...

The Glenn H. Brown Liquid Crystal Institute® in the College of Arts and Sciences at Kent State University will host the 26th International Liquid Crystal Conference on the Kent Campus from July 31-Aug. 5. The event is open to the public, but paid registration is required. Organized by the International Liquid Crystal Society, more than 70...

A group of researchers in Kent State University's College of Arts and Sciences have published a breakthrough article on new properties of liquid crystals in the May 27 issue of Physical Review Letters. The article, which describes some recent surprising results involving nematic liquid crystals induced by a high magnetic field, is cur...