Paper Number
GR1 

Session
Gallery of Rheology Contest

Title
Kaleidoscopic mesophases: Colors of relaxation

Presentation Date and Time
October 23, 2019 (Wednesday) 6:30

Track / Room
Gallery of Rheology / Main Lobby on 3rd floor

Authors (Click on name to view author profile)

1. Marquez Garcia, Maria (New Mexico State University, Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering)
2. Bandegi, Alireza (New Mexico State University, Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering)
3. Foudazi, Reza (New Mexico State University, Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering)

Author and Affiliation Lines (in printed abstract book)
Maria Marquez Garcia, Alireza Bandegi, and Reza Foudazi
Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003

Speaker / Presenter 
Foudazi, Reza

Text of Abstract
Amphiphilic molecules can self-assemble into mesophase structures to minimize their free energy. The structures formed from this self-assembly are known as lyotropic liquid crystals (LLCs). Polarized optical microscopy reveals the characteristic optical textures of lamellar and hexagonal mesophases due to their birefringence. The aim of this work is to study the structural changes of surfactant/ionic liquid mesophases by using polarized optical microscopy. Applying high strains can change the alignment of LLCs, which evolves during relaxation process back to the unaligned state.