Inhomogeneous bulk nematic order reconstruction

A two-dimensional model within the Q-tensor description of liquid crystals is used to describe the inhomogeneous order reconstruction in a nematic cell driven by tony modulation in the anchoring conditions. Homogeneous and inhomogeneous reconstruction are contrasted: the former is defectless, the la...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Physical review. E, Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics Statistical, nonlinear, and soft matter physics, 2008-02, Vol.77 (2 Pt 1), p.020702-020702, Article 020702
Main Authors: Lombardo, G, Ayeb, H, Ciuchi, F, De Santo, M P, Barberi, R, Bartolino, R, Virga, E G, Durand, G E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Condensed Matter
Physics
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Summary:A two-dimensional model within the Q-tensor description of liquid crystals is used to describe the inhomogeneous order reconstruction in a nematic cell driven by tony modulation in the anchoring conditions. Homogeneous and inhomogeneous reconstruction are contrasted: the former is defectless, the latter is defect mediated. While the transition thresholds are comparable in both cases and in good agreement with experimental data, the biaxial wall breaking is considerably slower in the inhomogeneous transition than in the homogeneous one. The shape of the signal given by the electric current flowing through the cell allows us to distinguish the actual path followed by the transition.
ISSN:1539-3755
1550-2376
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevE.77.020702