Self‐Assembled Azo‐Benzothiazole Mesogens: Align the Structure and Follow the Heat to Uncover Anisotropic Photothermal Pathways (Adv. Mater. 49/2026)

Self-Assembled Azo-Benzothiazole Mesogens In their Research Article (DOI: 10.1002/adma.74167), Kwang-Un Jeong and co-workers elucidated the relationship between molecular alignment and directional photothermal dissipation using a thiazole-functionalized azobenzene liquid crystal mesogen. By constructing robust π–π stacked anisotropic assemblies, they revealed polarization-dependent heat generation originating from anisotropic light absorption and direction-dependent nonradiative dissipation, demonstrating the potential of polarization-selective photothermal materials for optical encryption and information security.