English

Multiple Front Propagation Into Unstable States

Condensed Matter 2015-06-25 v1

Abstract

The dynamics of transient patterns formed by front propagation in extended nonequilibrium systems is considered. Under certain circumstances, the state left behind a front propagating into an unstable homogeneous state can be an unstable periodic pattern. It is found by a numerical solution of a model of the Fr\'eedericksz transition in nematic liquid crystals that the mechanism of decay of such periodic unstable states is the propagation of a second front which replaces the unstable pattern by a another unstable periodic state with larger wavelength. The speed of this second front and the periodicity of the new state are analytically calculated with a generalization of the marginal stability formalism suited to the study of front propagation into periodic unstable states. PACS: 47.20.Ky, 03.40.Kf, 47.54.+r

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.cond-mat/9312050,
  title  = {Multiple Front Propagation Into Unstable States},
  author = {R. Montagne and A. Amengual and E. Hernandez-Garcia and M. San Miguel},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/9312050},
  year   = {2015}
}

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12 pages