Related papers: Continuous Isotropic-Nematic transition in compres…
We study the kinetics of the nematic-isotropic transition in a two-dimensional liquid crystal by using a lattice Boltzmann scheme that couples the tensor order parameter and the flow consistently. Unlike in previous studies, we find the…
We have employed the Density Functional Theory formalism to investigate the nematic-isotropic capillary transitions of a nematogen confined by walls that favor antagonist orientations to the liquid crystal molecules (hybrid cell). We…
We investigate the kinetics of phase separation for a mixture of rodlike viruses (fd) and polymer (dextran), which effectively constitutes a system of attractive rods. This dispersion is quenched from a flow-induced fully nematic state into…
The isotropic to ferroelectric nematic liquid transition had been theoretically studied over one hundred years ago, but its experimental studies are rare. Here we present polarizing optical microscopy studies and theoretical considerations…
We analyze the phase behavior of lyotropic nematic liquid crystals in the self-organizing flow, viz. so called active nematics (AN). Their elastic properties are mutually caused by evolution of topological defects (for instance,…
Relaxor ferroelectrics are complex oxide materials which are rather unique to study the effects of compositional disorder on phase transitions. Here, we study the effects of quenched cubic random electric fields on the lattice instabilities…
Anisotropic rod-like particles form liquid crystalline phases with varying degrees of orientational and translational order. When confined geometrically, these phases can give rise to topological defects, which can be selected and…
The phase behavior of a melt of monodisperse rod-coil diblocks is studied. We derive a Landau free energy functional for both a compositional and a nematic order parameter. The excluded volume interaction between the rod blocks is modeled…
We explore the nematic order of model goethite nanorods in an external magnetic field within Onsager-Parsons density functional theory. The goethite rods are represented by monodisperse, charged spherocylinders with a permanent magnetic…
Strong effects of the Faraday instability on suspensions of rodlike colloidal particles are reported through measurements of the critical acceleration and of the surface wave amplitude. We show that the transition to parametrically excited…
Complex fluids transition from laminar to transitory flow above a critical control parameter, akin to their Newtonian counterparts. In a continuum mechanics sense, fluid elements follow the ensuing complex trajectories, giving rise to…
We investigate isotropic-isotropic, isotropic-nematic and nematic-nematic phase coexistence in binary mixtures of circular platelets with vanishing thickness, continuous rotational degrees of freedom and radial size ratios $\lambda$ up to…
In this paper, we present a microscopic model for heterogeneous ferroelectric and an order parameter for relaxor phase. We write a Landau theory based on this model and its application to ferroelectric PbFe$_{1/2}$Ta$_{1/2}$O$_3$ (PFT) and…
Nematic twist--bend is the fifth nematic phase recognized in nature. This phase exhibits spiral orientational order, thus it is a chiral structure and it can be stabilized in systems composed of achiral molecules. The microscopic origin of…
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…
Within the Landau paradigm of continuous phase transitions, ordered states of matter are characterized by a broken symmetry. Although the broken symmetry is usually evident, determining the driving force behind the phase transition is often…
We present anisotropic thermal expansion measurements on single crystalline ErNi2B2C. All three, superconducting, antiferromagnetic and weak ferromagnetic phase transitions are unambiguously distinguished in the data. Anisotropic uniaxial…
Resistivity measurements are widely exploited to uncover electronic excitations and phase transitions in metallic solids. While single crystals are preferably studied to explore crystalline anisotropies, these usually cancel out in…
We study the phase behaviour of hard rods with length polydispersity, treated within a simplified version of the Onsager model. We give a detailed description of the unusual phase behaviour of the system when the rod length distribution has…
The O(N) model of layered antiferro- and ferromagnets with a weak interlayer coupling and/or easy-axis anisotropy is considered. A renormalization group (RG) analysis in this model is performed, the results for N=3 being expected to agree…