adjective
- relating to or denoting a state of liquid crystals in which molecules are aligned in parallel but not in layers
Usage: technical; physics and materials science
Examples
- Nematic liquid crystals are commonly used in LCD displays.
- The nematic phase occurs at higher temperatures than the smectic phase.
- Scientists studied the alignment of molecules in the nematic state.
- Nematic materials respond to electric fields by changing their optical properties.
- The transition from nematic to isotropic liquid happens at a specific temperature.