In the afternoon of November 14th, Professor Dirk Jan Broer from Eindhoven University of Technology was invited to visit the School of Advanced Soft Matter and give an academic presentation on the topic of Harnessing Chirality: Motorized Liquid Crystals in Action.

Liquid crystal materials are known for their highly controllable ordered molecular self-assembly properties and are widely used in fields such as displays, diffractive optics, soft robots, and active surfaces. Professor Broer introduced in his report a liquid crystal elastomer intelligent material that utilizes ordered regulation of liquid crystal pointing vectors to achieve controllable external field response. He also elaborated on how the introduction of chirality can break through the traditional linear, twisted, or defect oriented simple orientation methods of liquid crystals and achieve more diverse spatial orientation distribution designs. Combined with light or electrically triggered motor molecules, molecular conformational changes can be amplified into macroscopic mechanical effects that are visible and touchable to the naked eye through synergistic interactions within the liquid crystal phase. The preparation of multifunctional responsive materials with complex spatial structure design using in-situ photopolymerization technology was discussed in depth, and the prospects of liquid crystal polymer materials in practical applications such as intelligent information windows, tactile feedback surfaces, flexible robotic arms, soft robots, and self-cleaning lubrication surfaces were discussed. Professor Broer emphasized that this study transforms microscopic molecular behavior into macroscopic functions through multi-scale design, providing a new paradigm for the innovation of soft matter materials in the field of smart devices.

Professor Broer's work has revealed the enormous potential of chiral driven liquid crystals in dynamically responsive materials, and the combination of simulation and experimentation has opened up an efficient research mode for soft matter engineering. Professor Dirk Jan Broer is currently an honorary professor at Eindhoven University of Technology, a researcher at the Institute of Complex Molecular Systems, and a distinguished professor at South China Normal University. He focuses on responsive polymers, self-organized systems, and liquid crystal research, with outstanding achievements in the fields of optics and soft mechanics applications. In 1985, he pioneered the in-situ photopolymerization process of liquid crystal monomers, which has now become a standard technology for developing optical components and soft robots in both academia and industry. Since 2010, he has been leading the Department of Functional Organic Materials and Devices at Eindhoven University of Technology. Professor Broer is a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and has been awarded the highest civilian honor in the Netherlands, the Order of the Lion Knight.