Recent Results in the Field of Liquid Crystals

Thermotropic mesomorphous phases such as occur in the melts of many organic substances are considered. Though mesomorphous melts were first observed by Reinitzer in 1888, fundamental structural problems regarding such melts have not, as yet, been completely solved. Part I of this article deals mainly with such structural problems and with the theories of crystalline organic liquids. Part II describes the use of nematic solvents for magnetic resonance studies on oriented molecules. Examples are given to illustrate the possibilities offered by this procedure, and some of the results obtained so far are reviewed.