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Vice President for Research
and Dean of Graduate Studies
Professor, Chemistry Department
B.S. (1976) in Chemistry, College of William and Mary
M.S. (1979) in Chemistry from Carnegie Mellon University
Ph.D. (1980) in Physical Chemistry from Carnegie Mellon University
Dr. West joined the LCI staff in 1984; he currently serves as director
of the Liquid Crystal Institute and the National Science Foundation
Science and Technology Center for Advanced Liquid Crystalline Optical
Materials (ALCOM).
He played a major role in the growth of the Liquid Crystal Institute
under the directorship of Dr. J. William Doane. Dr. West was appointed
a Senior Research Fellow in 1984 and concentrated on the development
of polymer dispersed liquid crystals (PDLCs). He became Associate Director
for Applied Programs in 1988. He participated in the preparation of
the proposal for the National Science Foundation Science and Technology
Center for Advanced Liquid Crystalline Optical Materials (ALCOM), awarded
in 1991 for a period of eleven years. He initiated its Industrial Partnership
Program which has attracted over 30 North American companies and an
Industrial Sponsors Program which is tailored for scientific interchanges
with Asian and European companies.
In parallel with his administrative duties, Dr. West maintains
an active and productive research program. He has published
over 90 articles and holds twelve U.S. patents related to
liquid crystal materials. He concentrates his research on
the development of PDLC and cholesteric materials for use
in electro-optic devices and on photoalignment of liquid
crystals.
Current research areas and ALCOM projects
PDLC materials, electro-optical devices, and photoalignment
ALCOM Projects
Alignment and Surface Induced Phenomena
Heterogeneous Structures
Click on Publications link at top of page for publications by John West.
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