Related papers: Continuous Crystallization in Hexagonally-Ordered …
Freezing of charged colloids on square or triangular two-dimensional periodic substrates has been recently shown to realize a rich variety of orientational orders. We propose a theoretical framework to analyze the corresponding structures.…
In this work, we develop a rigorous theoretical framework for the evolution of linear viscoelastic properties across the sol-gel transition. More specifically, we derive general admissible expressions for the relaxation modulus and dynamic…
We investigate energetically favorable configurations of point disclinations in nematic films having a bump geometry. Gradual expansion in the bump width {\Delta} gives rise to a sudden shift in the stable position of the disclinations from…
We analyze a model problem based on highly disparate elastic constants that we propose in order to understand corners and cusps that form on the boundary between the nematic and isotropic phases in a liquid crystal. For a bounded planar…
Cholesteric liquid crystals exhibit great morphological richness of static metastable states. Understanding the transitions between such states is key for the development of switchable devices. We show, using a quasi-one-dimensional model,…
The critical behavior of a model with N-vector complex order parameter and three quartic coupling constants that describes phase transitions in unconventional superconductors, helical magnets, stacked triangular antiferromagnets, superfluid…
Periodic field patterns of atoms and their charges/spins/orbits emerge in crystals, forming novel states of matter called emergent crystals (ECs). In recent years, they are observed in diverse systems such as skyrmion crystals in…
We demonstrate that a first order isotropic-to-nematic phase transition in liquid crystals can be succesfully modeled within the generalized Landau-de Gennes theory by selecting an appropriate combination of elastic constants. The numerical…
A supersolid is a system that presents long-range order and shear rigidity as a solid but which also supports a non-dissipative superflow as a superfluid. From an effective perspective, supersolids are identified with phases of matter that…
The rigidity transition occurs when, as the density of microscopic components is increased, a disordered medium becomes able to transmit and ensure macroscopic mechanical stability, owing to the appearance of a space-spanning rigid…
It is known by now that amorphous solids at zero temperature do not possess a nonlinear elasticity theory: besides the shear modulus which exists, all the higher order coefficients do not exist in the thermodynamic limit. Here we show that…
The phase-diagram of the two-dimensional Blume-Capel model with a random crystal field is investigated within the framework of a real-space renormalization group approximation. Our results suggest that, for any amount of randomness, the…
We study the interplay between the fluid-crystal transition and the glass transition of elastic sphere system with polydispersity using nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. It is found that the end point of the crystal-fluid…
We perform exact Statistical Mechanics calculations for a system of elongated objects (hard needles) that are restricted to translate along a line and rotate within a plane, and that interact via both excluded-volume steric repulsion and…
We derive a new renormalization group to calculate a non-trivial critical exponent of the divergent correlation length which gives a universality classification of essential singularities in infinite-order phase transitions. This method…
Particulate matter, such as foams, emulsions, and granular materials, attain rigidity in a dense regime: the rigid phase can yield when a threshold force is applied. The rigidity transition in particulate matter exhibits {\it bona fide}…
Extensions of a previously presented Landau-de Gennes type liquid crystalline phase transition model for the direct isotropic/smectic-A (lamellar) a phase transition to the direct isotropic/smectic-C (tilted lamellar) transition are…
The random first-order transition (RFOT) theory of the structural glass transition is reviewed in a pedagogical fashion. The rigidity that emerges in crystals and glassy liquids is of the same fundamental origin. In both cases, it…
We investigate the early part of the crystal nucleation process in the hard sphere fluid using data produced by computer simulation. We find that hexagonal order manifests continuously in the overcompressed liquid, beginning approximately…
The selection of stacking order in a broad range of close-packed polymorphic materials remains a challenging enigma. Using in situ cryogenic transmission electron microscopy, we uncover the atomistic mechanisms governing the vapour…