Twists and Turns of Liquid Crystals Unravelled by Small-Angle Scattering

X-ray scattering is a highly versatile characterization method and has seen widespread use across all fields of science. Previous review articles pertaining to small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SWAXS) have either been highly specific or narrow in scope. Generally, other SWAXS reviews have been mainly tailored toward characterizing biological protein samples or polymers. However, there appears to be a literature gap in how SWAXS may be used in characterizing self-assembled systems, more specifically, liquid crystals. SWAXS is a crucial technique used for characterizing liquid crystals, offering valuable crystallographic insights that cannot be directly observed by optical or spectroscopic methods. Unlike spectroscopic techniques, SWAXS can provide valuable nanoscale structural information over a larger volume of material, and it will be discussed in detail herein. This review seeks to fill that gap as well as aid in educating and welcoming prospective scientists interested in learning to use the technique for materials characterization. Several studies will be covered on how SWAXS was used to characterize the most common self-assembled phases.