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Splay-bend nematic phases of bent colloidal silica rods induced by polydispersity

Author

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  • Ramakrishna Kotni

    (Utrecht University)

  • Albert Grau-Carbonell

    (Utrecht University)

  • Massimiliano Chiappini

    (Utrecht University)

  • Marjolein Dijkstra

    (Utrecht University)

  • Alfons Blaaderen

    (Utrecht University)

Abstract

Liquid crystal (LC) phases are in between solids and liquids with properties of both. Nematic LCs composed of rod-like molecules or particles exhibit long-range orientational order, yielding characteristic birefringence, but they lack positional order, allowing them to flow like a liquid. This combination of properties as well as their sensitivity to external fields make nematic LCs fundamental for optical applications e.g. liquid crystal displays (LCDs). When rod-like particles become bent, spontaneous bend deformations arise in the LC, leading to geometric frustration which can be resolved by complementary twist or splay deformations forming intriguing twist-bend (NTB) and splay-bend (NSB) nematic phases. Here, we show experimentally that the elusive NSB phases can be stabilized in systems of polydisperse micron-sized bent silica rods. Our results open avenues for the realization of NTB and NSB phases of colloidal and molecular LCs.

Suggested Citation

  • Ramakrishna Kotni & Albert Grau-Carbonell & Massimiliano Chiappini & Marjolein Dijkstra & Alfons Blaaderen, 2022. "Splay-bend nematic phases of bent colloidal silica rods induced by polydispersity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:13:y:2022:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-022-34658-y
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-34658-y
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Bing Liu & Thijs H. Besseling & Michiel Hermes & Ahmet F. Demirörs & Arnout Imhof & Alfons van Blaaderen, 2014. "Switching plastic crystals of colloidal rods with electric fields," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 5(1), pages 1-8, May.
    2. V. Borshch & Y.-K. Kim & J. Xiang & M Gao & A Jákli & V. P. Panov & J. K. Vij & C. T. Imrie & M. G. Tamba & G. H. Mehl & O. D. Lavrentovich, 2013. "Nematic twist-bend phase with nanoscale modulation of molecular orientation," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 4(1), pages 1-8, December.
    3. Massimiliano Chiappini & Marjolein Dijkstra, 2021. "A generalized density-modulated twist-splay-bend phase of banana-shaped particles," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    4. Yang Yang & Guangdong Chen & Srinivas Thanneeru & Jie He & Kun Liu & Zhihong Nie, 2018. "Synthesis and assembly of colloidal cuboids with tunable shape biaxiality," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 9(1), pages 1-8, December.
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