  We have prepared a homologous series of filamentous viruses with varying
contour length using molecular cloning techniques. These viruses are
monodisperse enough to form a stable smectic phase. Two systems are studied.
The first system consists of viruses to which polymers are covalently attached
to the virus surface. Through studies of the isotropic - cholesteric phase
transition we demonstrate that covalently attached polymers alter the effective
diameter of the virus. Additionally, we have produced mixtures of viruses whose
ratio of effective diameters varies by a factor of five. The second system is
composed of mixtures of rod-like viruses and non-absorbing polymers. With this
system we study the kinetics of the isotropic - smectic phase transition and
describe observations of a number of novel metastable structures of unexpected
complexity.
