ABSTRACT
If people are asked for the different states of materials, most will only know the solid, the liquid and the gaseous states. But often in nature, the borders between the different categories are not well defined. Ordinary fluids are isotropic in nature; they appear optically, magnetically, electrically, etc., to be the same from any perspective. The liquid crystal state is a distinct state of matter observed between the crystalline (solid) and isotropic (liquid) states: they have some of the ordering properties of solids, but they flow like liquids. Liquid crystals represent a unique segment of soft matter, where the orientational order and mobility have delicate balance in determining the macroscopic properties.
