Volume 144, 2010
From the journal:

Faraday Discussions

Mesoscopic modelling of colloids in chiral nematics

Miha Ravnik,*a   Gareth P. Alexander,b   Julia M. Yeomansc  and  Slobodan Zumerad  

* Corresponding authors

a Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana, Jadranska 19, Ljubljana, Slovenia
E-mail: miha.ravnik@fmf.uni-lj.si

b Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, 209 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA

c Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, 1 Keble Road, OX1 3NP, Oxford, UK

d J. Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, Ljubljana, Slovenia

Abstract

We present numerical modelling of colloidal particles in chiral nematics with cubic symmetry (blue phases) within the framework of the Landau-de Gennes free energy. The interaction potential of a single, nano-sized colloidal particle with a −1/2 disclination line is calculated as a generic trapping mechanism for particles within the cholesteric blue phases. The interaction potential is shown to be highly anisotropic and have threefold rotational symmetry. We discuss the equilibration of the colloidal texture with respect to particle positions and the unit cell size of the blue phase. We also describe how preservation of the liquid crystal volume and the number of particles allows blue phase colloidal structures with different unit cell sizes and configurations to be compared numerically.

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Article information

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1039/B908676E
Article type
Paper
Submitted
01 May 2009
Accepted
18 May 2009
First published
24 Aug 2009

Faraday Discuss., 2010,144, 159-169

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Mesoscopic modelling of colloids in chiral nematics

M. Ravnik, G. P. Alexander, J. M. Yeomans and S. Zumer, Faraday Discuss., 2010, 144, 159 DOI: 10.1039/B908676E

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