Related papers: Discontinuous order parameters in liquid crystal t…
We extend a lattice Boltzmann algorithm of liquid crystal hydrodynamics to include an applied electric field. The approach solves the equations of motion written in terms of a tensor order parameter. Back-flow effects and the hydrodynamics…
Lattice defects in crystalline materials create long-range elastic fields which can be modelled on the atomistic scale using an infinite system of discrete nonlinear force balance equations. Starting with these equations, this work…
I show that two-dimensional nematic order in an active fluid film can be stable and long-ranged if exchange of particles and momentum with an ambient three-dimensional fluid is allowed. Number-conserving films present an instability, with a…
Discrete models of dislocations in cubic crystal lattices having one or two atoms per unit cell are proposed. These models have the standard linear anisotropic elasticity as their continuum limit and their main ingredients are the elastic…
We develop a molecular model of non-uniform deformations within the framework of liquid crystal rubber elasticity. We show that, similarly to the uniform case, the theory is not sensitive to the molecular details of polymer liquid crystal…
I report on some work in progress on the dynamics of extended objects in field theories after a rapid phase transition, as is relevant in the early Universe. An analytic technique, originally introduced to approximate the dynamics of…
Crystals are a state of matter characterised by periodic order. Yet crystalline materials can harbour disorder in many guises, such as non-repeating variations in composition, atom displacements, bonding arrangements, molecular…
Topological defects play an important role in physics of elastic media and liquid crystals. Their kinematics is determined by constraints of topological origin. An example is the glide motion of dislocations which has been extensively…
Because of the isotropic and disordered nature of liquids, the anisotropy hidden in intermolecular interactions are often neglected. Accordingly, the order parameter describing a simple liquid has so far been believed to be only density. In…
Liquid crystalline elastomers (LCEs) are shape-changing materials that exhibit large deformations in response to applied stimuli. Local control of the orientation of LCEs spatially directs the deformation of these materials to realize…
A modified phase field crystal model in which the free energy may be minimised by an order parameter profile having isolated bumps is investigated. The phase diagram is calculated in one and two dimensions and we locate the regions where…
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…
Anisotropic fluids appear in a diverse array of systems, from liquid-crystal displays to bacterial swarms, and are characterized by orientational order. Large colloidal particles immersed in such environments disturb the medium's…
Given recipe of qualitative, kinetic modelling by geometric methods of three-dimensional dendritic crystals. Characteristic features of the perturbations appearing on the surface of a spherical body, leading to different scenarios of the…
We investigate the connection between the transport properties and the thermodynamics of electronic systems with a tendency to form broken-symmetry mesophases evocative of the physics of liquid crystals. Through a hydrodynamic approach to…
Liquid crystals are known for their optical birefringence, a property that gives rise to intricate patterns and colors when viewed in a microscope between crossed polarisers. Resulting images are rich in geometric patterns and serve as…
We investigate the growth of two-dimensional (2D) crystals on fluctuating surfaces using a phase field crystal model that is relevant on atomic length and diffusive time scales. Motivated by recent experiments which achieved unprecedented…
We investigate experimentally and numerically the defect configurations emerging when a cholesteric liquid crystal is confined to a spherical shell. We uncover a rich scenario of defect configurations, some of them non-existent in nematic…
The structure of a molecular liquid, in both the nematic liquid crystalline and isotropic phases, around a cylindrical macroparticle, is studied using density functional theory. In the nematic phase the structure of the fluid is highly…
Liquid crystals establish a nearly unique combination of thermodynamic, hydrodynamic, and topological behavior. This poses a challenge to their theoretical understanding and modeling. The arena where these effects come together is the…