http://experimentationlab.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/AFMImages/butt_AFM.pdf

Force measurements with the atomic force microscope: Technique, interpretation and applications

The widespread use of controlled molecular-level motion in key natural processes suggests that great rewards could come from bridging the gap between the present generation of synthetic molecular systems, which by and large rely upon electronic and chemical effects to carry out their functions, and the machines of the macroscopic world, which utilize the synchronized movements of smaller parts to perform specific tasks. This is a scientific area of great contemporary interest and extraordinary recent growth, yet the notion of molecular-level machines dates back to a time when the ideas surrounding the statistical nature of matter and the laws of thermodynamics were first being formulated. Here we outline the exciting successes in taming molecular-level movement thus far, the underlying principles that all experimental designs must follow, and the early progress made towards utilizing synthetic molecular structures to perform tasks using mechanical motion. We also highlight some of the issues and challenges that still need to be overcome.

Synthetic molecular motors and mechanical machines.

Rapid improvements in sequencing and array-based platforms are resulting in a flood of diverse genome-wide data, including data from exome and whole-genome sequencing, epigenetic surveys, expression profiling of coding and noncoding RNAs, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and copy number profiling, and functional assays. Analysis of these large, diverse data sets holds the promise of a more comprehensive understanding of the genome and its relation to human disease. Experienced and knowledgeable human review is an essential component of this process, complementing computational approaches. This calls for efficient and intuitive visualization tools able to scale to very large data sets and to flexibly integrate multiple data types, including clinical data. However, the sheer volume and scope of data pose a significant challenge to the development of such tools.

Integrative Genomics Viewer

Over the 100 years since its discovery, liquid crystals have been the intriguing subject for both academia and industries. The textbook of de Gennes The Physics of Liquid Crystals published in 1974 is still the bible for many LC researchers, but new subjects unmentioned in the book have also risen for these years. This chapter describes the story of the recent developments and the future perspectives in physics of liquid crystals, especially focusing on the contributions by Japanese research groups for the last decade.

Physics of Liquid Crystals

Dynamic atomic force microscopy methods

It has been shown experimentally that molecules, which exhibit liquid crystal phases in bulk, also show interesting phenomena when they are formed in monolayers at air-water interface. The purpose of this work is to clarify to what extent can a simple model explain the complicated behavior of such Langmuir monolayers. Molecular dynamic simulation is conducted to observe the phase and dynamics of Langmuir monolayers

Simulation Studies of Langmuir Monolayers

Liquid-crystalline smectic phases possess a layered structure which is so soft that the structure sometimes deforms and changes into a three dimensional ordered or disordered inter-connected structure. The “sponge” is a disordered phase, whereas the “smectic Q” is an ordered one, both of which were found to appear in highly chiral thermotropic systems. The structures and properties of the sponge phase were investigated by the microscopic, X-ray diffraction and visco-elastic measurements and the soft nature of the phase is confirmed. Both of the phases are produced only if the optical purity of the compound is high enough, in which the stability of the smectic Q phase was found to be more sensitive to the optical purity than that of the sponge phase.

Molecular Organization Realized by Soft Character of Smectic Layer

A practical method to rapidly obtain the 2D thickness distribution in free-standing smectic films is developed based on the colour information of reflected image of the film. The red(R), green(G) a...

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/02678292.2020.1825843

Rapid thickness mapping of free-standing smectic films using colour information of reflected light

We have developed a new device called the dynamic cell, whereby the twist angle and cell thickness of a liquid crystal cell can be dynamically varied For a twist angle larger than 90°, there occur

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/15421406.2017.1287486

Breaking planar liquid crystal anchoring to form controllable twist disclination loops

We study how the initial deformation of a nematic liquid crystal affects the interaction between particles mediated by the elastic deformation of a nematic liquid crystal. We calculate the interaction energy between particles in a hybrid nematic cell, homeotropic on the surface of one confining plate and tangential (director can rotate freely) on the other. We find an analytic form of the interaction energy in the case of weak anchoring on the surface of the particle. This interaction energy can be non-monotonic and have a minimum in its landscape, which makes a clear contrast to that in a uniform nematic liquid crystal.

Hiroshi Yokoyama

Papers

Simulation Studies of Langmuir Monolayers

Molecular Organization Realized by Soft Character of Smectic Layer

Rapid thickness mapping of free-standing smectic films using colour information of reflected light

Breaking planar liquid crystal anchoring to form controllable twist disclination loops

Interaction between spherical particles in a deformed liquid crystal