SOL-GEL PROCESSING OF OPTICAL AND ELECTROOPTICAL MATERIALS

The sol-gel process represents a room-temperature method of producing a wide range of ceramic materials through the formation of a glassy network by the polymerization of suitable monomers. The use of the technique to produce, for example, sonogels, organic-inorganic composites, NLO glasses, and electrooptical materials such as gel-glass dispersed liquid crystals (GDLCs) is reviewed. An example of a GDLC is shown on this issue's front cover, 4-pentyl-4-biphenylcarbonitrile in an LC stale being dispersed in a thin film of silica.