Carbon nanotubes as liquid crystals.

Carbon nanotubes are the best of known materials with a combination of excellent mechanical, electronic, and thermal properties. To fully exploit individual nanotube properties for various applications, the grand challenge is to fabricate macroscopic ordered nanotube assemblies. Liquid-crystalline behavior of the nanotubes provides a unique opportunity toward reaching this challenge. In this Review, the recent developments in this area are critically reviewed by discussing the strategies for fabricating liquid-crystalline phases, addressing the solution properties of liquid-crystalline suspensions, and exploiting the practical techniques of liquid-crystal routes to prepare macroscopic nanotube fibers and films.