PHD, Kent State University, 2015, College of Arts and Sciences / Chemical Physics

Topological defects plays an important role in many physical processes ranging from morphogenesis of phase transitions in condensed matter system to the response to surface confinement and application of external fields. In this dissertation, we investigate the topological defects both in lyotropic and thermotropic nematics in order to characterize the studied materials.

Committee: Oleg Lavrentovich (Advisor); Hiroshi Yokoyama (Committee Member); Liang-Chy Chien (Committee Member); Samuel Sprunt (Committee Member); Elizabeth Mann (Committee Member) Subjects: Engineering; Experiments; Materials Science; Optics; Physical Chemistry; Physics