Dependence of domain wall dynamics on background wave number.

Abstract

We report on the growth of domains of standing waves in electroconvection in a nematic liquid crystal, focusing on the evolution of domain walls. An ac voltage is applied to the system, forming an initial state that consists of traveling striped patterns with two different orientations, zig and zag rolls. The standing waves are generated by suddenly applying a periodic modulation of the amplitude of the applied voltage that is approximately resonant with the traveling frequency of the pattern. By varying the modulation frequency, we are able to vary the steady-state, average wave number. We characterize the evolution of the domain walls as a function of the average background wave number by measuring the total area and length of domain walls present in the system as a function of time. We find that as the background wave number is varied away from the "natural" wave number for the pattern, the evolution of the domain walls occurs at a faster rate.