Alignment of Hard Spherocylinders by Hard Spheres on Substrates

• Published in: Molecular Crystals and Liquid Crystals 2015-05, Vol.612 (1), p.24-32
• Main Authors: Koda, Tomonori, Uchida, Makoto, Nishioka, Akihiro, Haba, Osamu, Yonetake, Koichiro, Kwak, Musun, Momoi, Yuichi, Kim, Nakwon, Hong, Sangpyo, Kang, Dongwoo, Choi, Youngseok
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alignment; Computer simulation; Crystals; Drag (hindrance); Fluids; Liquid crystals; Molecules; Monte Carlo methods; Monte Carlo simulation; Nematic; nematic phase; Spheres; substrate; Substrates
• ISSN: 1542-1406; 1563-5287; 1527-1943
• DOI: 10.1080/15421406.2015.1030572

We performed Monte Carlo simulation of the system consisting of hard spheres, hard spherocylinders and a large hard plate. These elements were used to examine how substrates modified by adsorbed particles affect an alignment of liquid crystal molecules. In order to adsorb the hard spheres on the hard plate, dragging potential for spheres were introduced. We prepared a homogeneous and a homeotropic alignment as an initial configuration of the simulations. Numbers and the size of adsorbed spheres were changed. Results showed that molecular alignment after relaxation depended on the initial configuration even for the same system parameters. We expect that the nematic phase of the present systems favor the homogeneous alignment. This is because we observed cases in which the homeotropic alignment was canceled after relaxation and we never observed cases in which the homogeneous alignment was canceled for the nematic phase of the present systems.