Organizing Committee
- Jan Lagerwall
University of Luxembourg - Apala Majumdar
University of Bath/University of Strathclyde - Shawn Walker
Louisiana State University
Abstract
Liquid crystals (LCs) are classic examples of partially ordered materials that combine the fluidity of liquids with the long-range order of solids, and have great potential to enable new materials and technological devices. A variety of LC phases exist, e.g. nematics, smectics, cholesterics, with a rich range of behavior when subjected to external fields, curved boundaries, mechanical strain, etc. Recently, new systems came into focus, such as bent-core LC phases, twist-bend-modulated nematics, chromonics and polymer-stabilized blue phases, with more to be discovered.
Best known for applications in displays, LCs have recently been proposed for new applications in biology, nanoscience and beyond, such as biosensors, actuators, drug delivery, and bacterial control (related to active matter). Indeed, it is believed that the LC nature of DNA once enabled the mother of all applications, namely life itself. New numerical methods and scientific computation is needed to guide new theory and models for these systems that capture the interplay of symmetry, geometry, temperature and confinement in spatio-temporal pattern formation for LCs and extended LC-like systems.
This workshop provides an interdisciplinary platform for computational and experimental research in extended LC-like systems, and how these approaches can yield new theoretical insight for novel LC systems.
Image: Cholesteric LC shells with a thin top let light through from above, resulting in multiple internal selective reflection events. The shells act as a selective optical echo chamber. Picture credit: Dr. Yong Geng.

Confirmed Speakers & Participants
Talks will be presented virtually or in-person as indicated in the schedule below.
- Speaker
- Poster Presenter
- Attendee
- Virtual Attendee
-
James Adler
Tufts University
-
Anca Andrei
Tufts University
-
Timothy Atherton
Tufts University
-
Konark Bisht
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
-
Maria-Carme Calderer
University of Minnesota
-
Douglas Cleaver
Sheffield Hallam University
-
James Dalby
University of Strathclyde
-
Michael Dimitriyev
Georgia Institute of Technology
-
Thomas Fai
Brandeis University
-
Lidong Fang
Shanghai Jiao Tong University
-
Patrick Farrell
University of Oxford
-
Zhiyuan Geng
Courant Institute of Mathematical Scieneces
-
Helen Gleeson
University of Leeds
-
Joseph Harris
University of Strathclyde
-
Kirsten Harth
Otto von Guericke University
-
Alfa Heryudono
University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth
-
Andrew Hicks
Louisiana State University
-
Jan Lagerwall
University of Luxembourg
-
Dmitriy Leykekhman
University of Connecticut
-
Jichun Li
University of Nevada Las Vegas
-
Yuan Liu
Wichita State University
-
Scott MacLachlan
Memorial University of Newfoundland
-
Ruma Maity
Indian Institute of Technology Bombay
-
Apala Majumdar
University of Bath/University of Strathclyde
-
Sabetta Matsumoto
Georgia Institute of Technology
-
Lidia Mrad
Mount Holyoke College
-
Ricardo Nochetto
University of Maryland
-
Peter Palffy-Muhoray
Kent University
-
Sourav Patranabish
Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi
-
Tom Powers
Brown University
-
Denisse Reyes Arango
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México
-
roberta ribeiro de almeida
University thecnolgy of Paraná
-
Michele Ruggeri
TU Wien
-
Giusy Scalia
Université du Luxembourg
-
Francesca Serra
John Hopkins University
-
Jie Shen
Purdue University
-
GIORDANO TIERRA CHICA
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS
-
Epifanio Virga
Università di Pavia
-
Shawn Walker
Louisiana State University
-
SULIN WANG
Michigan State University
-
Qi Wang
University of South Carolina
-
Yiwei Wang
Illinois Institute of Technology
-
Jingmin Xia
University of Oxford
-
Yue Yu
Lehigh University
-
Ziyao Yu
Purdue University
-
Jia Zhao
Utah State University