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A closer look at Liquid Crystal Displays
Robert Lasarzik:
In every part of our life, we nowadays get in touch with liquid
crystal displays. Our computers, watches, and phones contain this
mysterious fluid, which is at a physical state between liquid and
solid matter. To be able to keep pace with the rapid development of
displays of electrical devices in recent years, a thorough theoretical
understanding of the materials used in these devices is
required.
In this talk, we present results concerning liquid
crystals of nematic type. We rst consider the essential physical
properties of such fluids and discuss the mathematical models
available. We then study the governing nonlinear partial differential
equations from a more mathematical point of view and discuss
corresponding functional analytic techniques as well as difficulties
arising. Recent theoretical results are presented.
In particular,
we show existence of generalized solutions for the Ericksen-Leslie
model under certain general assumptions on the free energy potential
using a discrete approximation scheme. Finally, we discuss the
adaption of the proof to non-nematic liquid crystal phases and other
open problems.