Liquids with Chiral Bond Order
Abstract
I describe new phases of a chiral liquid crystal with nematic and hexatic order. I find a conical phase, similar to that of a cholesteric in an applied magnetic field for Frank elastic constants . I discuss the role of fluctuations in the context of this phase and the possibility of satisfying the inequality for sufficiently long polymers. In addition I discuss the topological constraint relating defects in the bond order field to textures of the nematic and elucidate its physical meaning. Finally I discuss the analogy between smectic liquid crystals and chiral hexatics and propose a defect-riddled ground state, akin to the Renn-Lubensky twist grain boundary phase of chiral smectics.
Cite
@article{arxiv.cond-mat/9507023,
title = {Liquids with Chiral Bond Order},
author = {Randall D. Kamien},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/9507023},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
plain TeX, 19 Pages, four figures, uufiled and included. Minor correction and clarification