Related papers: Generic first-order phase transitions between isot…
The paradigm of spontaneous symmetry breaking encompasses the breaking of the rotational symmetries $O(3)$ of isotropic space to a discrete subgroup, i.e. a three-dimensional point group. The subgroups form a rich hierarchy and allow for…
We consider the weakly first order phase transition between the isotropic and ordered phases of nematics in terms of the behavior of topological line defects. Analytical and Monte Carlo results are presented for a new coarse-grained lattice…
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…
Using grand canonical Monte Carlo (GCMC) simulations, we investigate the isotropic-nematic phase transition for hard rods of size Lx1x1 on a 3D cubic lattice. We observe such a transition for L >= 6. For L = 6, the nematic state has a…
We study a minimal model of a system with coexisting nematic and polar orientational orders, where one field tends to order and the other prefers isotropy. For strong coupling, the ordered field aligns the isotropic one, locking their…
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…
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…
Nematic phases, breaking spontaneously rotational symmetry, provide for ubiquitously observed states of matter in both classical and quantum systems. These nematic states may be further classified by their $N$--fold rotational invariance…
We consider various sufficiently nonlinear sigma models for nematic liquid crystal ordering of RP^{N-1} type and of lattice gauge type with continous symmetries. We rigorously show that they exhibit a first-order transition in the…
By molecular modeling we demonstrate that the nematic long-range order discovered in bent-core liquid crystal systems should reveal further spatially homogeneous phases. Two of them are identified as a tetrahedratic nematic ($N_T$) phase…
A self-interacting polymer can undergo an orientational ordering transition, depending on the magnitude of the nematic interaction. The effect of embedding such a polymer into a flexible surface on this transition is studied on the…
We explore models of hard-rod fluids with a finite number of allowed orientations, and construct their bulk phase diagrams within Onsager's second virial theory. For a one-component fluid, we show that the discretization of the orientations…
We investigate, using Monte Carlo simulations, the phase diagram of a system of hard rectangles of size $m\times mk$ on a square lattice when the aspect ratio $k$ is a non-integer. The existence of a disordered isotropic phase, a nematic…
In this paper, we discuss the equilibrium phases and collapse transitions of a lyotropic nematic gel immersed in an isotropic solvent. A nematic gel consists of a cross-linked polymer network with rod-like molecules embedded in it. Upon…
The electronic nematic phase occurs when the point-group symmetry of the lattice structure is broken, due to electron-electron interactions. We study a model for the nematic phase on a square lattice with emphasis on the phase transition…
The isotropic-nematic (I-N) phase transition in a system of long straight rigid rods of length k on square lattices is studied by combining Monte Carlo simulations and theoretical analysis. The process is analyzed by comparing the…
For two-patch particles in two dimensions, we find that the coupling of anisotropic patchy interactions and the triangular lattice leads to novel phase behaviors. For asymmetric patch-patch (PP) and nonpatch-nonpatch (NN) interactions, the…
Field theories with extra dimensions live in a limbo. While their classical solutions have been the subject of considerable study, their quantum aspects are difficult to control. A special class of such theories are anisotropic gauge…
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…
The physics of nematic liquid crystals has been subject of intensive research since the late 19th century. However, because of the limitations of chemistry the focus has been centered around uni- and biaxial nematics associated with…