%0 Journal Article %1 blue %A Henrich, O %A Stratford, K %A Marenduzzo, D %A Cates, M E %D 2010 %J Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A %K Ordering amorphous bijel blue dynamics entails kinetic phases stabilization %N 30 %P 13212-13215 %R 10.1073/pnas.1004269107 %T Ordering dynamics of blue phases entails kinetic stabilization of amorphous networks %U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2922121/ %V 107 %X The cubic blue phases of liquid crystals are fascinating and technologically promising examples of hierarchically structured soft materials, comprising ordered networks of defect lines (disclinations) within a liquid crystalline matrix. We present large-scale simulations of their domain growth, starting from a blue phase nucleus within a supercooled isotropic or cholesteric background. The nucleated phase is thermodynamically stable; one expects its slow orderly growth, creating a bulk cubic phase. Instead, we find that the strong propensity to form disclinations drives the rapid disorderly growth of a metastable amorphous defect network. During this process, the original nucleus is destroyed; reemergence of the stable phase may therefore require a second nucleation step. Our findings suggest that blue phases exhibit hierarchical behavior in their ordering dynamics, to match the hierarchy in their structure.

@article{blue, abstract = {The cubic blue phases of liquid crystals are fascinating and technologically promising examples of hierarchically structured soft materials, comprising ordered networks of defect lines (disclinations) within a liquid crystalline matrix. We present large-scale simulations of their domain growth, starting from a blue phase nucleus within a supercooled isotropic or cholesteric background. The nucleated phase is thermodynamically stable; one expects its slow orderly growth, creating a bulk cubic phase. Instead, we find that the strong propensity to form disclinations drives the rapid disorderly growth of a metastable amorphous defect network. During this process, the original nucleus is destroyed; reemergence of the stable phase may therefore require a second nucleation step. Our findings suggest that blue phases exhibit hierarchical behavior in their ordering dynamics, to match the hierarchy in their structure.}, added-at = {2014-02-11T15:37:36.000+0100}, author = {Henrich, O and Stratford, K and Marenduzzo, D and Cates, M E}, biburl = {https://www.bibsonomy.org/bibtex/2e49e376672abb385ae91767f4c9e7a6d/ross_mck}, description = {Ordering dynamics of blue phases entails kinetic stabilization of amorphous networks}, doi = {10.1073/pnas.1004269107}, interhash = {218976e95bc87b069b8e2fab841b81b8}, intrahash = {e49e376672abb385ae91767f4c9e7a6d}, journal = {Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A}, keywords = {Ordering amorphous bijel blue dynamics entails kinetic phases stabilization}, month = jul, number = 30, pages = {13212-13215}, pmid = {20624988}, timestamp = {2014-02-11T15:37:36.000+0100}, title = {Ordering dynamics of blue phases entails kinetic stabilization of amorphous networks}, url = {http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2922121/}, volume = 107, year = 2010 }