Tailored morphologies in two-dimensional ferronematic wells

Konark Bisht, Yiwei Wang, Varsha Banerjee, and Apala Majumdar
Phys. Rev. E 101, 022706 – Published 28 February 2020

Abstract

We focus on a dilute uniform suspension of magnetic nanoparticles in a nematic-filled micron-sized shallow well with tangent boundary conditions as a paradigm system with two coupled order parameters. This system exhibits spontaneous magnetization without magnetic fields. We numerically obtain the stable nematic and associated magnetization morphologies, induced purely by the geometry, the boundary conditions, and the coupling between the magnetic nanoparticles and the host nematic medium. Our most striking observations pertain to domain walls in the magnetization profile, whose location can be manipulated by the coupling and material properties, and stable interior and boundary nematic defects, whose location and multiplicity can be tailored by the coupling too. These tailored morphologies are not accessible in uncoupled systems and can be used for multistable systems with singularities and stable interfaces.

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  • Received 29 November 2019
  • Accepted 4 February 2020

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.101.022706

©2020 American Physical Society

Physics Subject Headings (PhySH)

Condensed Matter, Materials & Applied Physics

Authors & Affiliations

Konark Bisht1,*, Yiwei Wang2,†, Varsha Banerjee1,‡, and Apala Majumdar3,4,§

  • 1Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, Hauz Khas 110016, New Delhi, India
  • 2Department of Applied Mathematics, Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, Illinois 60616, USA
  • 3Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XQ, United Kingdom
  • 4Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, United Kingdom

  • *Konark.Bisht@physics.iitd.ac.in
  • ywang487@iit.edu
  • varsha@physics.iitd.ac.in
  • §apala.majumdar@strath.ac.uk

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Issue

Vol. 101, Iss. 2 — February 2020

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