Editing Liquid crystal (section)

==Mineral liquid crystals==

Examples of liquid crystals can also be found in the mineral world, most of them being lyotropic. The first discovered was [[vanadium(V) oxide]], by Zocher in 1925.<ref>{{cite journal| vauthors = Zocher H |title=Uber freiwillige Strukturbildung in Solen. (Eine neue Art anisotrop flqssiger Medien)|journal=Z. Anorg. Allg. Chem.|date=1925|volume=147|page=91|doi=10.1002/zaac.19251470111}}</ref> Since then, few others have been discovered and studied in detail.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Davidson|first1=Patrick|last2=Gabriel|first2=Jean-Christophe P. | name-list-style = vanc  |title=Mineral Liquid Crystals from Self-Assembly of Anisotropic Nanosystems|journal=Top Curr Chem|date=2003|volume=226|page=119|doi=10.1007/b10827}}</ref> The existence of a true [[nematic]] phase in the case of the smectite [[clay]]s family was raised by Langmuir in 1938,<ref>{{cite journal| vauthors = Langmuir I |title=The role of attractive and repulsive forces in the formation of tactoids, thixotropic gels, protein crystals and coacervates|journal=J Chem Phys|date=1938|volume=6|issue=12|page=873|bibcode = 1938JChPh...6..873L |doi = 10.1063/1.1750183 }}</ref> but remained an open question for a very long time and was only confirmed recently.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Gabriel|first1=Jean Christophe P.|last2=Sanchez|first2=Clément|last3=Davidson|first3=Patrick | name-list-style = vanc |title=Observation of Nematic Liquid-Crystal Textures in Aqueous Gels of Smectite Clays|journal=J. Phys. Chem.|date=1996|volume=100|issue=26|page=11139|doi=10.1021/jp961088z}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal| vauthors = Paineau E, Philippe AM, Antonova K, Bihannic I, Davidson P, Dozov I, Gabriel JC, Impéror-Clerc M, Levitz P, Meneau F, Michot LJ | display-authors = 6 |s2cid=136533412|title=Liquid–crystalline properties of aqueous suspensions of natural clay nanosheets|journal=Liquid Crystals Reviews|date=2013|volume=1|issue=2|page=110|doi=10.1080/21680396.2013.842130}}</ref>

With the rapid development of nanosciences, and the synthesis of many new anisotropic [[nanoparticle]]s, the number of such mineral liquid crystals is increasing quickly, with, for example, carbon nanotubes and graphene. A lamellar phase was even discovered, H<sub>3</sub>Sb<sub>3</sub>P<sub>2</sub>O<sub>14</sub>, which exhibits hyperswelling up to ~250&nbsp;nm for the interlamellar distance.<ref name="Swollen liquid-crystalline lamellar"/>