Zig-zag wall lattice in a nematic liquid crystal with an in-plane switching configuration

Generation of buckling and wrinkling in elastic films: The effect of initial imperfection

The symmetry breaking that is induced by initial imperfection (e.g., geometry or material inhomogeneity and out-of-plane disturbance) is a necessary condition for film buckling. However, the effect of initial imperfection on the buckling behavior is still not clear cut. Herein, given an elastic substrate-free circular film subjected to in-plane compressive stress and arbitrary initial imperfection, evolution of the deflection morphology is numerically studied and theoretically analyzed. Specifically, a two-dimensional spatial spectrum analysis is adopted to acquire the deflection morphology's dominant wavelength, which is combined with the maximum absolute deflection to characterize the deflection patterns. Before the so-called critical instability, the film under compression is found to go through a transition stage. Overall, the deflection increment in this stage is negligible except approaching the critical state. However, the dominant wavelength is found to be continuously growing (or decreasing) rather than suddenly appears upon reaching the so-called critical state, and, interestingly, such growth is found to be independent of the intensity and pattern of the initial imperfection if the same initial dominant wavelength is guaranteed. In the discussion, for both the transition and buckling stages, evolution laws of the deflection amplitude and wavelength are established analytically and found to agree well with the numerical results. This research clearly presents the actual evolution process of wrinkling morphology from linear in-plane deformation with small stable deflection to out-of-plane instability with large deflection, which deepens the cognition of instability behavior of films and provides a basis for related applications such as high-precision mechanical characterization.

Wavenumber selection via spatial parameter jump

The Swift-Hohenberg equation describes an instability which forms finite-wavenumber patterns near onset. We study this equation posed with a spatial inhomogeneity; a jump-type parameter that renders the zero solution stable for x<0 and unstable for x>0. Using normal forms and spatial dynamics, we prove the existence of a family of steady-state solutions that represent a transition in space from a homogeneous state to a striped pattern state. The wavenumbers of these stripes are contained in a narrow band whose width grows linearly with the size of the jump. This represents a severe restriction from the usual constant-parameter case, where the allowed band grows with the square root of the parameter. We corroborate our predictions using numerical continuation and illustrate implications on stability of growing patterns in direct simulations.This article is part of the theme issue 'Stability of nonlinear waves and patterns and related topics'.

Harnessing diffraction grating in an in-plane switching cell submitted to zigzag lattice

Programmable diffraction gratings are relevant in optical data processing. One of the adequate device candidates is the in-plane switching liquid crystal cell. This technology, developed initially for liquid crystal screens, has also been studied with two inter-digital electrodes as a diffraction grating. Recently, the apparition of programmable zigzag wall lattices in an in-plane switching configuration has been reported. Here, we report a theoretical and experimental study of programmable diffraction grating in an in-plane switching cell.

Asymmetric counterpropagating fronts without flow

Out-of-equilibrium systems exhibit domain walls between different states. These walls, depending on the type of connected states, can display rich spatiotemporal dynamics. In this Rapid Communication, we investigate the asymmetrical counterpropagation of fronts in an in-plane-switching cell filled with a nematic liquid crystal. Experimentally, we characterize the different front shapes and propagation speeds. These fronts present dissimilar elastic deformations that are responsible for their asymmetric speeds. Theoretically, using a phenomenological model, we describe the observed dynamics with fair agreement.