Related papers: Liquid-Crystal Transitions: A First Principles Mul…
We consider an off-lattice liquid crystal pair potential in strictly two dimensions. The potential is purely repulsive and short-ranged. Nevertheless, by means of a single parameter in the potential, the system is shown to undergo a…
Using a generalized order parameter gradient expansion within density functional theory, we derive a phase-field-crystal model for liquid crystals composed by apolar particles in three spatial dimensions. Both the translational density and…
Soft materials (e.g., enveloped viruses, liposomes, membranes and supercooled liquids) simultaneously deform or display collective behaviors, while undergoing atomic scale vibrations and collisions. While the multiple space-time character…
We present a thermodynamically consistent theoretical framework for lyotropic liquid crystals (LCs) based on the GENERIC (General Equation for the Non-Equilibrium Reversible-Irreversible Coupling) formalism. This formalism ensures…
We consider here the simplified Ericksen-Leslie system on the whole three-dimensional space. This system deals with the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations strongly coupled with a harmonic map flow which models the dynamical behavior for…
Recent advances in classical density functional theory are combined with stochastic process theory and rare event techniques to formulate a theoretical description of nucleation, including crystallization, that can predict nonclassical…
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…
These lectures focus on bifurcation analysis as a tool for studying phase transitions that occur in models of liquid-crystalline systems. We show how this approach bridges the gap between the phenomenological Landau theory and the --- often…
Liquid crystals in two dimensions undergo a first-order isotropic-to-quasi-nematic transition, provided the particle interactions are sufficiently ``sharp and narrow''. This implies phase coexistence between isotropic and quasi-nematic…
We present nonlinear dynamic equations for nematic and smectic $A$ liquid crystals in the presence of an alternating electric field and explain their derivation in detail. The local electric field acting in any liquid-crystalline system is…
Based on static and dynamical density functional theory, a phase-field-crystal model is derived which involves both the translational density and the orientational degree of ordering as well as a local director field. The model exhibits…
We extend the phase field crystal model to accommodate exact atomic configurations and vacancies by requiring the order parameter to be non-negative. The resulting theory dictates the number of atoms and describes the motion of each of…
We use numerical simulation to examine the possibility of a reversible liquid-liquid transition in supercooled water and related systems. In particular, for two atomistic models of water, we have computed free energies as functions of…
The Landau theory of phase transitions has been productively applied to phase transitions that involve rotational symmetry breaking, such as the transition from an isotropic fluid to a nematic liquid crystal. It even can be applied to the…
The general Ericksen-Leslie system for the flow of nematic liquid crystals is reconsidered in the non-isothermal case aiming for thermodynamically consistent models. The non-isothermal model is then investigated analytically. A fairly…
We present a minimal Landau theory of plastic-to-crystal phase transitions in which the key components are a multipole-moment order parameter that describes the orientational ordering of the constituent molecules, coupling between such…
Chromonic liquid crystals (CLCs) are lyotropic materials which are attracting growing interest for their adaptability to living systems. A considerable body of works has been devoted to exploring their properties and applications. In this…
The phase-field-crystal model for liquid crystals is solved numerically in two spatial dimensions. This model is formulated with three position-dependent order parameters, namely the reduced translational density, the local nematic order…
Computer simulations are presented of the isotropic-to-nematic transition in a liquid crystal confined between two parallel plates a distance H apart. The plates are neutral and do not impose any anchoring on the particles. Depending on the…
Many molecular theories of nematic liquid crystals consider the constituent molecules as cylindrically symmetric. In many cases, this approximation may be useful. However the molecules of real nematics have lower symmetry. Therefore a…