Solitons are a well-known and intriguing aspect of nonlinear behavior in a continuous system such as a fluid: a wave propagates through the medium without distortion. Liquid crystals are highly ordered systems without a rigid, long-range structure. Solitons in liquid crystals (sometimes referred to as "walls") have a wide variety of remarkable properties that are becoming important for practical applications such as electroluminescent display. This book, the first review of the subject to be published, contains not only surveys of the existing literature, but presents new results as well.

This publication, in two volumes, is devoted to the scientific impact of the work of Nobel Laureate, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century. It covers the important fields for which de Gennes was renowned: solid state (magnetism and superconductivity), macroscopic random media and percolation, supersolids, liquid crystals, polymers, adhesion and friction, and biophysics. The book brings together internationally renowned experts to contribute their perspectives on the significance of de Gennes' works. They have each selected a definitive paper, which gives...

This publication, in two volumes, is devoted to the scientific impact of the work of Nobel Laureate, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes, one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century. It covers the important fields for which de Gennes was renowned: solid state (magnetism and superconductivity), macroscopic random media and percolation, supersolids, liquid crystals, polymers, adhesion and friction, and biophysics. The book brings together internationally renowned experts to contribute their perspectives on the significance of de Gennes' works. They have each selected a definitive paper, which gives...

Solitons are a well-known and intriguing aspect of nonlinear behavior in a continuous system such as a fluid: a wave propagates through the medium without distortion. Liquid crystals are highly ordered systems without a rigid, long-range structure. Solitons in liquid crystals (sometimes referred to as "walls") have a wide variety of remarkable properties that are becoming important for practical applications such as electroluminescent display. This book, the first review of the subject to be published, contains not only surveys of the existing literature, but presents new results as well.