Related papers: Freezing on a Sphere
We study by molecular dynamics the interplay between arrest and crystallization in hard spheres. For state points in the plane of volume fraction ($0.54 \leq phi \leq 0.63$) and polydispersity ($0 \leq s \leq 0.085$), we delineate states…
Ultrasoft colloids typically do not spontaneously crystallize, but rather vitrify, at high concentrations. Combining in-situ rheo-SANS experiments and numerical simulations we show that shear facilitates crystallization of colloidal star…
We investigate topography-driven generation of defects in liquid crystals films coating frozen surfaces of spatially varying Gaussian curvature whose topology does not automatically require defects in the ground state. We study in…
In irreversible aggregation processes droplets or polymers of microscopic size successively coalesce until a large cluster of macroscopic scale forms. This gelation transition is widely believed to be self-averaging, meaning that the order…
We study packings of bidispersed spherical particles on a spherical surface. The presence of curvature necessitates defects even for monodispersed particles; bidispersity either leads to a more disordered packing for nearly equal radii, or…
We generalize, and then use, a recently introduced formalism to study thermal fluctuations of atomic displacements in several two and three dimensional crystals. We study both close packed as well as open crystals with multi atom bases.…
A first-order transition is numerically found in a spherical surface model with skeletons, which are linked to each other at junctions. The shape of the triangulated surfaces is maintained by skeletons, which have a one-dimensional bending…
Spontaneous self-assembly of hard convex polyhedra are known to form orientationally disordered crystalline phases, where particle orientations do not follow the same pattern as the positional arrangement of the crystal. A distinct type of…
The solidification of metallic droplets into powder particles involves a complex interplay between heat diffusion, surface tension, and geometric constraints. In confined, curved systems -- such as those encountered in atomisation,…
We investigate the spontaneous generation of crystallized topological defects via the combining effects of fast rotation and rapid thermal quench on the spin-1 Bose-Einstein condensates. By solving the stochastic projected Gross-Pitaevskii…
We carry out computer simulations of a simple, two-dimensional off-lattice model that exhibits inverse melting. The monodisperse system comprises core-softened disks interacting through a repulsive square shoulder located inside an…
Crystals in nature often demonstrate curved morphologies rather than classical faceted surfaces. Inspired by biogenic curved single crystals, we demonstrate that gold single crystals exhibiting curved surfaces can be grown with no need of…
Non-relativistic particles that are effectively confined to two dimensions can in general move on curved surfaces, allowing dynamical phenomena beyond what can be described with scalar potentials or even vector gauge fields. Here we…
We study the equilibrium arrangements of polarization vortices in (PbTiO$_3$)$_n$/(SrTiO$_3$)$_n$ superlattices by means of second-principles simulations. We find that, at low temperatures, polarization vortices organize in a regular…
The adhesion dynamics of a membrane confined between two permeable walls is studied using a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model. The membrane morphology decomposes into adhesion patches on the upper and the lower walls and obeys a nonlinear…
Crystallization represents the prime example of a disorder order transition. In realistic situations, however, container walls and impurities are frequently present and hence crystallization is heterogeneously seeded. Rarely the seeds are…
Spatially ordered systems confined to surfaces such as spheres exhibit interesting topological structures because of curvature induced frustration in orientational as well as translational order. The study of these structures is important…
Recently, continuum elasticity theory has been applied to explain the shape transition of icosahedral viral capsids - single-protein-thick crystalline shells - from spherical to buckled/faceted as their radius increases through a critical…
Spontaneous onset of a low temperature topologically ordered phase in a 2-dimensional (2D) lattice model of uniaxial liquid crystal (LC) was debated extensively pointing to a suspected underlying mechanism affecting the RG flow near the…
The formation of topological defects in a second order phase transition in the early universe is an out-of-equilibrium process. Condensed matter experiments seem to support Zurek's mechanism, in which the freezing of thermal fluctuations…