Effects of flow on topological defects in a nematic liquid crystal near a colloid

We perform molecular dynamics simulations of a nematic liquid crystal flowing around a colloidal particle. We study the flow-induced modifications of the topological defects in the liquid crystal due to the presence of the colloid. We show that flow distorts Boojum defects into an asymmetrically lar...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of chemical physics 2014-02, Vol.140 (5), p.054905-054905
Main Authors: Stieger, Tillmann, Schoen, Martin, Mazza, Marco G
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Colloids
Crystal defects
Defects
Janus
Liquid crystals
Molecular dynamics
Nanoparticles
Nematic crystals
Physics
Saturn
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Summary:We perform molecular dynamics simulations of a nematic liquid crystal flowing around a colloidal particle. We study the flow-induced modifications of the topological defects in the liquid crystal due to the presence of the colloid. We show that flow distorts Boojum defects into an asymmetrically larger downstream lobe, and that Saturn ring defects are convected downstream along the flow direction, which is in agreement with experimental observations. Additionally, for a Janus colloid with both parallel and perpendicular patches, exhibiting a Boojum defect and a Saturn ring defect, we find that the Boojum defect facing the upstream direction is destroyed and the Saturn ring is convected downstream.
ISSN:0021-9606
1089-7690
DOI:10.1063/1.4862953