This book originated in the Proceedings of the Second Symposium on
Polymeric Liquid Crystals held by the Division of Polymer Chemistry in
the framework of the 1983 Fall Meeting of the American Chemical Society.
At the First Symposium in 1977, the literature in this field could be
encompassed in a single volume. To- day, that is no longer possible. The
field of Polymeric Liquid Crystals grew, and continues to grow, at a
very rapid pace. At present, we know of every major mesophase in its
polymeric form and of polymeric glasses, elastomers and fluids in their
liquid crystalline form. Every year, new polymeric mesophases are being
discovered. The aim of this book is to go beyond a compilation of papers
presented at the 1983 ACS Fall Meeting. It is conceived as a learning
tool for the benefit of the sci- entist interested in Polymeric Liquid
Crystals. The book is divided into three sections. The first section
contains articles discussing synthetic, physico- chemical, structural
and rheological aspects of Polymeric Liquid Crystals in their
generality. A chapter on methods currently used in this field is also
included. There are also chapters on theoretical and classification
aspects of PLCs. These self-contained tutorial chapters provide an
introduction to this field as well as to the specific papers given in
the book. They provide an exhaustive cover- age of literature on the
subject from its inception to the present.
