Jun Ichi Fukuda

Quasi-two-dimensional Skyrmion lattices in a chiral nematic liquid crystal

Skyrmions are particle-like topological entities in a continuous field that have an important role in various condensed matter systems, including two-dimensional electron gases exhibiting the quantum Hall effect, chiral ferromagnets and Bose-Einstein condensates. Here we show theoretically, with the aid of numerical methods, that a highly chiral nematic liquid crystal can accommodate a quasi-two-dimensional Skyrmion lattice as a thermodynamically stable state, when it is confined to a thin film between two parallel surfaces imposing normal alignment. A chiral nematic liquid crystal film can thus serve as a model Skyrmion system, allowing direct investigation of their structural properties by a variety of optical techniques at room temperatures that are less demanding than Skyrmion systems discussed previously.

In-plane bistable nematic liquid crystal devices based on nanoimprinted surface relief

The authors present a bistable nematic device, using a fourfold symmetrical bidirection nanometer-scale surface grating fabricated by the nanoimprinting lithography. The bistability is achieved by a composite action between two orthogonal surface undulations, which tend to stabilize the nematic director along either of the two diagonal axes. The switching between the bistable states is easily driven by orthogonal in-plane electric fields. A recent model of groove-induced surface anchoring due to Fukuda et al. [Phys. Rev. Lett. 98, 187803 (2007)] accounts for the azimuthal bistability in the present system.

Zigzag line defects and manipulation of colloids in a nematic liquid crystal in microwrinkle grooves

Spatially confined liquid crystals exhibit non-uniform alignment, often accompanied by self-organised topological defects of non-trivial shape in response to imposed boundary conditions and geometry. Here we show that a nematic liquid crystal, when confined in a sinusoidal microwrinkle groove, exhibits a new periodic arrangement of twist deformations and a zigzag line defect. This periodic ordering results from the inherent liquid crystal elastic anisotropy and the antagonistic boundary conditions at the flat liquid crystal–air and the curved liquid crystal–groove interfaces. The periodic structure can be tuned by controlling the groove geometry and the molecular chirality, which demonstrates the importance of boundary conditions and introduced asymmetry for the engineering of topological defects. Moreover, the kinks in the zigzag defects can trap small particles, which may afford a new method for manipulation of colloids. Our system, which uses easily fabricated microwrinkle grooves, provides a new microfabrication method based on the arrangement of controllable defects.

Accelerated nucleation of the 2014 Iquique, Chile Mw 8.2 Earthquake

The earthquake nucleation process has been vigorously investigated based on geophysical observations, laboratory experiments, and theoretical studies; however, a general consensus has yet to be achieved. Here, we studied nucleation process for the 2014 Iquique, Chile Mw 8.2 megathrust earthquake located within the current North Chile seismic gap, by analyzing a long-term earthquake catalog constructed from a cross-correlation detector using continuous seismic data. Accelerations in seismicity, the amount of aseismic slip inferred from repeating earthquakes, and the background seismicity, accompanied by an increasing frequency of earthquake migrations, started around 270 days before the mainshock at locations up-dip of the largest coseismic slip patch. These signals indicate that repetitive sequences of fast and slow slip took place on the plate interface at a transition zone between fully locked and creeping portions. We interpret that these different sliding modes interacted with each other and promoted accelerated unlocking of the plate interface during the nucleation phase.

Three-dimensional positioning and control of colloidal objects utilizing engineered liquid crystalline defect networks

Topological defects in liquid crystals not only affect the optical and rheological properties of the host, but can also act as scaffolds in which to trap nano or micro-sized colloidal objects. The creation of complex defect shapes, however, often involves confining the liquid crystals in curved geometries or adds complex-shaped colloidal objects, which are unsuitable for device applications. Using topologically patterned substrates, here we demonstrate the controlled generation of three-dimensional defect lines with non-trivial shapes and even chirality, in a flat slab of nematic liquid crystal. By using the defect lines as templates and the electric response of the liquid crystals, colloidal superstructures are constructed, which can be reversibly reconfigured at a voltage as low as 1.3 V. Three-dimensional engineering of the defect shapes in liquid crystals is potentially useful in the fabrication of self-healing composites and in stabilizing artificial frustrated phases.

Dynamics of a nematic liquid crystal around a spherical particle

We present the results of our numerical calculations that focus on the dynamics of a nematic liquid crystal around a spherical particle imposing strong homeotropic anchoring at the surface. The first part of this article is devoted to the discussion of the effect of an external magnetic or electric field on the director configuration of a nematic liquid crystal. With the aid of an adaptive mesh refinement scheme, together with the tensor description of the orientational order, for the first time in numerical calculations we successfully reproduce the transition from a hyperbolic hedgehog defect to a Saturn ring defect, which was observed in a recent experiment. We also find that the trajectories of the defect core sensitively depend on the field strength. In the second part we investigate how a hydrodynamic flow influences the orientational order of a nematic liquid crystal around a particle carrying a hyperbolic hedgehog defect. We observe that for an intermediate Ericksen number, which characterizes the ratio of the viscous force to the elastic force of a nematic liquid crystal, the liquid crystal is strongly convected by the flow, which results in a considerable elastic distortion.

A liquid crystalline chirality balance for vapours

Chiral discrimination of vapours plays an important role in olfactory perception of biological systems and its realization by artificial sensors has been an intriguing challenge. Here, we report a simple method that tangibly visualizes the chirality of a diverse variety of molecules dissolved from vapours with high sensitivity, by making use of a structural change in a periodic microstructure of a nematic liquid crystal confined in open microchannels. This microstructure is accompanied by a topological line defect of a zigzag form with equal lengths of ‘zig’ and ‘zag.’ We find that a tiny amount of vapour of chiral molecules injected onto the liquid crystal induces the imbalance of ‘zig’ and ‘zag’ depending on its enantiomeric excess within a few seconds. Our liquid-crystal-based ‘chirality balance’ offers a simple, quick and versatile chirality-sensing/-screening method for gas-phase analysis (for example, for odours, environmental chemicals or drugs).

Liquid Crystal Colloids: A Novel Composite Material Based on Liquid Crystals

Liquid crystal colloids are composite materials made up of colloidal particles and liquid crystalline host fluids. After introducing various specific properties of liquid crystal collloids that are absent in conventional colloidal systems, we review our studies, based mainly on computer simulations using Landau–de Gennes theory, to elicudate those properties of liquid crystal colloids. We first present our attempts to investigate the orientational profiles and defect structures of a nematic liquid crystal around one colloidal particle. We successfully reproduce two configurations observed experimentally when strong homeotropic anchoring is imposed at the particle surface; one is a configuration with a hedgehog defect, and in the other, the particle is encircled by a ring defect referred to as a Saturn ring. Next we focus on the interaction between particles mediated by the elastic distortions of the host nematic liquid crystal. We calculate the interaction between particles carrying a hedgehog, and that b...

Interaction between Particles in a Nematic Liquid Crystal: Numerical Study Using the Landau-de Gennes Continuum Theory

ABSTRACT We study numerically the interaction between particles in a nematic liquid crystal mediated by its elastic distortions with the aid of the Landau-de Gennes continuum theory. We consider the cases where two particles impose rigid normal anchoring on their surfaces and are accompanied by a hyperbolic hedgehog defect. As a function of the distance between the centers of the particles D, we evaluate the force f acting on the particles by integrating the stress tensor. The result is well described by a power law f ∝ D −x . When the “dipoles”, composed of a particle and a hyperbolic hedgehog, are in parallel directions, the interaction is attractive and the exponent is x ≃ 4, consistent with the experimental observations together with the theoretical expectation of the dipole-dipole interaction. For antiparallel dipoles, repulsive interaction is observed and x ≃ 3.6, slightly stronger than the dipole-dipole interaction.

Cholesteric blue phases: effect of strong confinement

After an overview of cholesteric blue phases, we review our recent numerical studies on possible defect structures when blue phase I (BP I) is confined in a thin cell composed of two parallel surfaces imposing homeotropic anchoring. The cell thickness is of the order of the unit cell dimension of the bulk cubic BP I. We find several structures of disclination lines which, to our knowledge, have never been discussed in the field of liquid crystals as equilibrium structures. Those structures include a parallel array of double helix disclination lines, and two parallel arrays of undulating disclination lines almost (but not exactly) perpendicular to each other. A first-order transition between those two structures is possible, and the similarity between them is discussed.