Abstract
We report on the dynamic confinement of colloidal liquid crystals in a two-dimensional slit pore with a periodically stretching and contracting boundary using Langevin dynamics simulations. The influence of moving walls on phase behavior is analyzed, and four structures are identified. It is found that boundary vibration can induce phase transition. Structural transition characterized by the change in particle orientation is caused by varying the amplitude or frequency of the oscillating boundary. The key factor determined by the work performed on the system maintaining a steady structure is also clarified from the energy perspective. The inhomogeneous mobility of these far-from-equilibrium structures is induced by the active boundary. Our results contribute to a better understanding of the slit dynamic confinement system and suggest a new way of generating order by dissipating energy in non-equilibrium systems.
Highlights
Liquid crystals (LCs) have received considerable attention due to their wide range of application in displays, biosensors, optical switches, and many other electro-optical devices
The structure of the particles can be manipulated by the amplitude or frequency of the boundary
We have introduced a novel confining slit vibration system to study colloidal LCs by means of Langevin dynamics simulations
Summary
Liquid crystals (LCs) have received considerable attention due to their wide range of application in displays, biosensors, optical switches, and many other electro-optical devices. With a periodic motion of the boundary, the system is dissipative, resembling fluid and granular material driven systems. Such systems driven out of the equilibrium states by changes in chemical or field-based stimuli have gained a lot of attention recently.. By controlling energy influx and energy dissipation, such driven systems can produce ordered structures, such as cluster phenomena, ordered separation, collective swirling motions, giant number fluctuations, phase transition, and so on. These self-assembled structures resulting from non-equilibrium systems promise to be good candidates for novel functional materials. By varying the amplitude and frequency of the boundary, our study can provide a route to capture a range of ordered structures, which are expected to have potential applications in novel responsive materials
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