Related papers: Flexoelectric switching in cholesteric blue phases
In spin crossover materials, an abrupt phase transition between a low spin state and a high spin state can be driven by temperature, pressure or by light irradiation. Of a special relevance are Fe(II) based coordination polymers where, in…
The impact of flexoelectric coupling on polarization reversal kinetics and space charge dynamics in thin films of ferroelectric-semiconductors has been theoretically studied. The relaxation-type Landau-Khalatnikov equation together with the…
The objective of this work is to study the effects of charge redistribution, applied layer-normal electric fields, applied strain, and layer engineering on the band alignment of Black Phosphorus (BP)/Molybdenum disulphide (MoS2)…
Mixtures of near-symmetric oppositely charged components with strong attractive short range interactions exhibit ordered lamellar phases at low temperatures. In the strong segregation limit the state of these systems can be described by the…
Recent experiments have found that a mechanically distorted blue phase can exhibit a primary linear electro-optic (Pockels) effect [F. Castles \textit{et al}. Nature Mater. \textbf{13}, 817 (2014)]. Here it is shown that flexoelectricity…
We construct a phase field model including hydrodynamics and elasticity in one-component systems. It can be used to investigate solid-liquid and liquid-liquid phase transitions. Upon first-order phase transition, a velocity field is induced…
Compressive mechanical stress exceeding a critical value leads to the formation of periodic surface buckling patterns in film-substrate systems. A comprehensive understanding of this buckling phenomenon is desired in applications where the…
In order to improve the hydrogen storage properties of calcium hydride (CaH2), we have tuned its thermodynamical properties through fluorination. Using ab-initio total energy calculations based on density functional theory, the structural…
The existence of phase-separated states is an essential feature of infinite-volume systems with a thermal, first-order phase transition. At energies between those at which the phase transition takes place, equilibrium homogeneous states are…
The effects of elasticity on the break-up of liquid threads in microfluidic cross-junctions is investigated using numerical simulations based on the "lattice Boltzmann models" (LBM). Working at small Capillary numbers, we investigate the…
The rigidity of elastic networks depends sensitively on their internal connectivity and the nature of the interactions between constituents. Particles interacting via central forces undergo a zero-temperature rigidity-percolation transition…
Various phase transitions in models for coupled charge-density waves are investigated by means of the $\epsilon$-expansion, mean-field theory, and Monte Carlo simulations. At zero temperature the effective action for the system with…
The inherent inconsistency in identifying the phase field in the phase field crystal Theory with the material mass and, simultaneously, with material distortion is discussed. In its current implementation, elastic relaxation in the phase…
When liquid-crystalline elastomers pass through the isotropic-nematic transition, the orientational order parameter and the elastic strain vary rapidly but smoothly, without the expected first-order discontinuity. This broadening of the…
Motivated by the observation of highly unstable flowing states in suspensions of microtubules and kinesin, we analyze a model of mutually-propelled filaments suspended in a solvent. The system undergoes a mean-field isotropic-nematic…
Under a sufficiently high applied electric field, a non-polar antiferroelectric material, such as \ce{PbZrO3}, can undergo a rapid transformation to a polar ferroelectric phase. While this behavior is promising for energy storage and…
Discontinuous quantum phase transitions and the associated metastability play central roles in diverse areas of physics ranging from ferromagnetism to false vacuum decay in the early universe. Using strongly-interacting ultracold atoms in…
Ferroelectric switching in BiFeO$_3$ multiferroic thin films with intrinsic ``stripe-like'' and ``bubble-like'' polydomain configurations was studied by piezoresponse force microscopy. Using the local electric field applied by a scanning…
Fluid phase equilibrium depends on the external constraints imposed on a system. In a closed system with fixed volume, depending on the average density, a vapor bubble may be stable, metastable, or unstable, with respect to the homogeneous…
We discuss the phenomenology of phase transitions studied with two control variables. Such measurements have become routine with magnetic field and temperature being varied for 1st order magnetic transitions with an ease not conceivable…