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The laptop talks!

for their unique optical properties, liquid crystals are finding increasing applications in displays of computer laptops, flat-screen televisions and other products. Now, physicists Jay S Patel and Y J Kim of the Pennsylvania State University, usa , report acoustic properties of liquid crystals. The duo discovered that during electrical switching of liquid crystals, they give out sound waves that can be heard by the human ear.

Potential uses of this novel phenomenon include tiny speakers and circuit components. Though these applications could still be sometime into the future, the researchers feel that they have discovered a new area of research that might lead to a better understanding of molecular dynamics in liquid crystals.

Liquid crystals

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