Abstract: By compressing a monolayer film,the coexistence of liquid condensed (LC) and liquid expanded (LE) phases can be reached.The transition from LE to LC is usually regarded as a first-order one,so the theory of crystallization can be applied.In this article we review our recent studies on the growth of LC domains in the LE-LC coexistence region driven by the illumination of a fluorescent microscope.The mechanism of this unusual 2D domain growth phenomenon is discussed.The formation of faceted, dendritic and fractal-like domains as well as the evolution and the transition of these patterns are investigated.

Key words: By compressing a monolayer film,the coexistence of liquid condensed (LC) and liquid expanded (LE) phases can be reached.The transition from LE to LC is usually regarded as a first-order one,so the theory of crystallization can be applied.In this article we review our recent studies on the growth of LC domains in the LE-LC coexistence region driven by the illumination of a fluorescent microscope.The mechanism of this unusual 2D domain growth phenomenon is discussed.The formation of faceted, dendritic and fractal-like domains as well as the evolution and the transition of these patterns are investigated.