Theory of interfacial dynamics of nematic polymers

 The interfacial momentum and torque balance equations for deforming interfaces between nematic polymers and isotropic viscous fluids are derived and analyzed with respect to shape selection and interfacial nematic ordering. It is found that the interfacial momentum balance equation for nematic interfaces involves bending forces that act normal to the interface, and that interfacial pressure jumps may exist even for planar surfaces. In addition tangential forces on nematic interfaces arise in the presence of surface gradients of the tensor order parameter. The torque balance equation shows that couple stress jumps are balanced by the surface molecular field. The interfacial balance equations are shown to be coupled such that nematic ordering depends on shape and vice versa. The governing dimensionless numbers for deforming nematic polymer interfaces are identified and the limiting regimes are discussed in reference to related experimental data. It is found that the ratio of Frank elasticity to surface anchoring controls whether the surface tensor order parameter deviates from its preferred equilibrium value. Whether the shape is affected, depends on the relative magnitudes of the isotropic surface tension, Frank bulk elasticity, and anchoring energy, and capillary number. Received: 16 April 1999/Accepted: 19 August 1999     

Sharp-Interface Nematic-Isotropic Phase Transformations With Flow

We develop a sharp-interface theory for phase transformations between the isotropic and uniaxial nematic phases of a flowing liquid crystal. Aside from conventional evolution equations for the bulk phases and corresponding interface conditions, the theory includes a supplemental interface condition expressing the balance of configurational momentum. As an idealized illustrative application of the theory, we consider the problem of an evolving spherical droplet of the isotropic phase surrounded by the nematic phase in a radially-oriented state. For this problem, the bulk and interfacial equations collapse to a single nonlinear second-order ordinary differential equation for the radius of the droplet—an equation which, in essence, expresses the balance of configurational momentum on the interface. This droplet evolution equation, which closely resembles a previously derived and extensively studied equation for the expansion of contraction of a spherical gas bubble in an incompressible viscous liquid, includes terms accounting for the curvature elasticity and viscosity of the nematic phase, interfacial energy, interfacial viscosity, and the ordering kinetics of the phase transformation. We determine the equilibria of this equation and study their stability. Additionally, we find that motion of the interface generates a backflow, without director reorientation, in the nematic phase. Our analysis indicates that a backflow measurement has the potential to provide an independent means to determine the density difference between the isotropic and uniaxial nematic phases.     

Analysis of Nematic Liquid Crystals with Disclination Lines

We investigate the structure of nematic liquid crystal thin films described by the Landau–de Gennes tensor-valued order parameter model with Dirichlet boundary conditions on the sides of nonzero degree. We prove that as the elasticity constant goes to zero in the energy, a limiting uniaxial nematic texture forms with a finite number of defects, all of degree or all of degree , corresponding to vertical disclination lines at those locations. We also state a result on the limiting behavior of minimizers of the Chern–Simons–Higgs model without magnetic field that follows from a similar proof.     

Irreversible thermodynamics of liquid crystal interfaces

A macroscopic theory for the dynamics of isothermal compressible interfaces between nematic liquid crystalline polymers and isotropic viscous fluids has been formulated using classical irreversible thermodynamics. The theory is based on the derivation of the interfacial rate of entropy production for ordered interfaces, that takes into account interfacial anisotropic viscous dissipation as well as interfacial anisotropic elastic storage. The symmetry breaking of the interface provides a natural decomposition of the forces and fluxes appearing in the entropy production, and singles out the symmetry properties and tensorial dimensionality of the forces and fluxes. Constitutive equations for the surface extra stress tensor and for surface molecular field are derived, and their use in interfacial balance equations for ordered interfaces is identified. It is found that the surface extra stress tensor is asymmetric, since the anisotropic viscoelasticity of the nematic phase is imprinted onto the surface. Consistency of the proposed surface extra stress tensor with the classical Boussinesq constitutive equation appropriate to Newtonian interfaces is demonstrated. The anisotropic viscoelastic nature of the interface between nematic polymers (NPs) and isotropic viscous fluids is demonstrated by deriving and characterizing the dynamic interfacial tension. The theory provides for the necessary theoretical tools needed to describe the interfacial dynamics of NP interfaces, such as capillary instabilities, Marangoni flows, wetting and spreading phenomena.     

Texture control strategies for flow-aligning liquid crystal polymers

The Landau-de Gennes nematodynamics equations for flow-aligning liquid crystal polymers are used to: (i) perform a simulation study of shear-induced textural transformation and defect nucleation and (ii) to integrate and characterize the combined effects of flow and temperature on defect densities in sheared flow-aligning LCPs. The results are summarized into texture scaling laws and texture diagrams given in terms of shear rates and temperature. The simulations, based on low dimensionality and imposed hydrodynamics, are in qualitative agreement with a wide range of previous scaling and experimental results. The results indicate that pronounced texturing with high defect densities occur at Deborah number close to unity and that decreasing temperature enhances texturing. The simulations capture a number of well known defect coarsening and defect nucleation processes including: (1) defect–defect annihilation, (2) defect pinching and (3) defect–wall interactions. The results are integrated into a texture control phased diagram that indicates the flow and temperature fields needed to achieve defect-free monodomain melts. This work provides the necessary foundation for higher dimensional modeling with coupled hydrodynamics and texturing.     

Stress analysis of a wedge disclination dipole interacting with a circular nanoinhomogeneity

This paper investigates the interaction between a wedge disclination dipole and a circular nanoinhomogeneity embedded in an infinite matrix. The Gurtin–Murdoch surface/interface elasticity model is applied to account for the interface stress effect of the nanoinhomogeneity. A closed form solution for the stress fields inside the inhomogeneity and matrix is derived with the complex variable method of Muskhelishvili. The influences of the interfacial and bulk material properties as well as the geometric parameters on the material force of the wedge disclination dipole are systematically discussed. It is found that the interface stress effect may influence the material force of the wedge disclination dipole significantly.     

Shear cell rupture of nematic liquid crystal droplets in viscous fluids

We model the hydrodynamics of a shear cell experiment with an immiscible nematic liquid crystal droplet in a viscous fluid using an energetic variational approach and phase-field methods [86]. The model includes the coupled system for the flow field for each phase, a phase-field function for the diffuse interface and the orientational director field of the liquid crystal phase. An efficient numerical scheme is implemented for the two-dimensional evolution of the shear cell experiment for this initial data. The same model reduces to an immiscible viscous droplet in a viscous fluid, which we simulate first to compare with other numerical and experimental behavior. Then we simulate drop deformation by varying capillary number (independent of liquid crystal physics), liquid crystal interfacial anchoring energy and Oseen–Frank distortional elastic energy. We show the number of eventual droplets (one to several) and “beads on a string” behavior are tunable with these three physical parameters. All stable droplets possess signature quadrupolar shear and normal stress distributions. The liquid crystal droplets always possess a global surface defect structure, called a boojum, when tangential surface anchoring is imposed. Boojums [79], [32] consist of degree +1/2 and ?1/2 surface defects within a bipolar global orientational structure.     

Roles of interfacial dynamics in the interaction behaviours between deformable oil droplets

Drainage and deformation of the intervening film can arguably represent the dynamic nature of colliding soft matters. The development of an interaction force analysis between soft interfaces helps to probe the drop deformation and the interfacial properties. Based on the SRYL model, the fluid flow inside the droplet and the convection-diffusion of the surfactant at the oil-water interface is coupled to model the distribution of a non-ionic surfactant (Span80) during drop deformation using AFM. This study quantifies the in situ interfacial concentration with a trace amount of surfactant at the interface and indicates its effect on the interaction forces between two immersed oil droplets in an aqueous solution.     

Droplet retraction in the presence of nanoparticles with different surface modifications

We studied the influence of nanoparticles with different surface modifications on the interfacial tension and relaxation of model polymer blend after cessation of different strains. The droplet retraction experiments were carried out on a model system composed of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) as the suspending fluid and polyisobutylene (PIB) as droplet at room temperature in the presence of hydrophobic and hydrophilic nanosilica. Different weight fractions of particles were dispersed in the PIB droplet before forming a dispersed droplet by using a microsyringe in shear cell. We found that applied strain, nanoparticle concentration and their thermodynamically preferred localization affect both nominal interfacial tension and droplet retraction process. By addition of nanoparticles at a concentration as low as 0.2%wt, the nominal interfacial tension decreases from 3.12?±?0.15 mN/m for neat PIB-PDMS interface depending on the surface characteristics of nanosilica. Hydrophilic nanosilica has the most effect on nominal interfacial tension and decreases it as low as 0.2?±?0.21 mN/m at 1 wt.% loading under a strain of 7. The results show that the retraction process in this system is mainly controlled by interfacial phenomena rather than bulk rheological properties. Additionally, the shape evolution of droplets changes and the retraction rate slows down in the presence of nanoparticles.     

Parallel transport and defects on nematic shells

Nematic shells are thin films of nematic liquid crystal deposited on the boundary of colloidal particles, where liquid crystal molecules may freely glide, while remaining tangent to the surface substrate. The surface nematic order is described here by an appropriate tensor field Q, which vanishes wherever a defect occurs in the molecular order. We show how the classical concept of parallel transport on a manifold introduced by Levi-Civita can be adapted to this setting to define the topological charge m of a defect. We arrive at a simple formula to compute m from a generic representation of Q. In a number of separate appendices, we revisit in a unified language several, apparently disparate applications of Levi-Civita’s parallel transport.     

Orientability and Energy Minimization in Liquid Crystal Models

Uniaxial nematic liquid crystals are modelled in the Oseen–Frank theory through a unit vector field n. This theory has the apparent drawback that it does not respect the head-to-tail symmetry in which n should be equivalent to ?n. This symmetry is preserved in the constrained Landau–de Gennes theory that works with the tensor \({Q=s \left(n\otimes n-\frac{1}{3} Id\right)}\). We study the differences and the overlaps between the two theories. These depend on the regularity class used as well as on the topology of the underlying domain. We show that for simply-connected domains and in the natural energy class W^1,2 the two theories coincide, but otherwise there can be differences between the two theories, which we identify. In the case of planar domains with holes and various boundary conditions, for the simplest form of the energy functional, we completely characterise the instances in which the predictions of the constrained Landau–de Gennes theory differ from those of the Oseen–Frank theory.     

Minimizers of the Landau–de Gennes Energy Around a Spherical Colloid Particle

We consider energy minimizing configurations of a nematic liquid crystal around a spherical colloid particle, in the context of the Landau–de Gennes model. The nematic is assumed to occupy the exterior of a ball B_r0, and satisfy homeotropic weak anchoring at the surface of the colloid and approach a uniform uniaxial state as \({|x|\to\infty}\). We study the minimizers in two different limiting regimes: for balls which are small \({r_0\ll L^{\frac12}}\) compared to the characteristic length scale \({L^{\frac 12}}\), and for large balls, \({r_0\gg L^{\frac12}}\). The relationship between the radius and the anchoring strength W is also relevant. For small balls we obtain a limiting quadrupolar configuration, with a “Saturn ring” defect for relatively strong anchoring, corresponding to an exchange of eigenvalues of the Q-tensor. In the limit of very large balls we obtain an axisymmetric minimizer of the Oseen–Frank energy, and a dipole configuration with exactly one point defect is obtained.     

Modified ghost fluid method for three-dimensional compressible multimaterial flows with interfaces exhibiting large curvature and topological change

In order to capture the material interface dynamics, especially under the impact of strong shocks, the key feature of the modified ghost fluid method (MGFM) is to construct a multimaterial Riemann problem normal to the interface and use its solution to define interface conditions. However, such process sometimes may not be easily or accurately implemented when the multidimensional interfaces come into contact or undergo significant deformations. In this article, a three-dimensional interface treating procedure is developed for a wide range of compressible multimaterial flows. It utilizes the MGFM with an explicit approximate Riemann problem solver to define interface conditions. More importantly, a weighted average technique is designed to optimize the treatment for interfaces exhibiting large curvature and topological change. This remedies two defects of the traditional approach in these extreme cases. One is that the normal directions of interfacial ghost nodes may not be easily calculated. The other is that the interface conditions may not be accurately defined. The numerical methodology is validated through several typical problems, including gas-liquid Riemann problem and shock-bubble/droplet interaction. These results indicate that the developed method is capable of dealing with interfacial evolutions in three dimensions, especially when interfaces undergo merger, fragmentation, and other complex changes.     

Function Spaces for Liquid Crystals

We consider the relationship between three continuum liquid crystal theories: Oseen–Frank, Ericksen and Landau–de Gennes. It is known that the function space is an important part of the mathematical model and by considering various function space choices for the order parameters s, n, and Q, we establish connections between the variational formulations of these theories. We use these results to justify a version of the Oseen–Frank theory using special functions of bounded variation. This proposed model can describe both orientable and non-orientable defects. Finally we study a number of frustrated nematic and cholesteric liquid crystal systems and show that the model predicts the existence of point and surface discontinuities in the director.     

Three dimensional phase-field investigation of droplet formation in microfluidic flow focusing devices with experimental validation

In this paper, the droplet formation process at a low capillary number in a flow focusing micro-channel is studied by performing a three-dimensional phase field benchmark based on the Cahn–Hilliard Navier–Stokes equations and the finite element method. Dynamic moving contact line and wetting condition are considered, and generalized Navier boundary condition (GNBC) is utilized to demonstrate the dynamic motion of the interface on wall surface. It is found that the mobility parameter plays a very critical role in the squeezing and breakup process to control the shape and size of droplets. We define the characteristic mobility M_c to represent the correct relaxation time of the interface. We also demonstrate that the characteristic mobility is associated with the physical process and should be kept as a constant as the product of the mobility tuning parameter χ and the square of interfacial thickness ε². This criterion is applied for different interfacial thicknesses to correctly capture the physical process of droplet formation. Moreover, the size of the droplet, the velocity of the droplet along the downstream, and the period of droplet formation are compared between the numerical and experimental results which agree with each other both qualitatively and quantitatively. The presented model and criterion can be used to predict the dynamic behavior and movement of multiphase flows.     

Modeling surface tension of a two‐dimensional droplet using smoothed particle hydrodynamics

Surface tension plays a significant role at the dynamic interface of free‐surface flows especially at the microscale in capillary‐dominated flows. A model for accurately predicting the formation of two‐dimensional viscous droplets in vacuum or gas of negligible density and viscosity resulting from axisymmetric oscillation due to surface tension is solved using smoothed particle hydrodynamics composed of the Navier‐Stokes system and appropriate interfacial conditions for the free‐surface boundaries. The evolution of the droplet and its free‐surface interface is tracked over time to investigate the effects of surface tension forces implemented using a modified continuous surface force method and is compared with those performed using interparticle interaction force. The dynamic viscous fluid and surface tension interactions are investigated via a controlled curvature model and test cases of nonsteady oscillating droplets; attention is focused here on droplet oscillation that is released from an initial static deformation. Accuracy of the results is attested by demonstrating that (i) the curvature of the droplet that is controlled; (ii) uniform distribution of fluid particles; (iii) clean asymmetric forces acting on the free surface; and (iv) nonsteady oscillating droplets compare well with analytical and published experiment findings. The advantage of the proposed continuous surface force method only requires the use of physical properties of the fluid, whereas the interparticle interaction force method is restricted by the requirement of tuning parameters.     

Low-Reynolds-number droplet motion in a square microfluidic channel

In this study, we investigate computationally the low-Reynolds-number droplet motion in a square micro-channel, a problem frequently encountered in microfluidic devices, enhanced oil recovery and coating processes. The droplet deformation and motion are determined via a three-dimensional spectral boundary element method for wall-bounded flows. The effects of the flow rate, viscosity ratio and droplet size on the interfacial dynamics are identified for droplets smaller and larger than the channel size and for a wide range of viscosity ratio. Owing to the stronger hydrodynamic forces in the thin lubrication film between the droplet interface and the solid walls, large droplets exhibit larger deformation and smaller velocity. Under the same average velocity, a droplet in a channel shows a significantly smaller deformation and higher velocity than in a cylindrical tube with the same size, owing to the existence of the corners’ area in the channel which permits flow of the surrounding fluid. A suitable periodic boundary implementation for our spectral element method is developed to study the dynamics of an array of identical droplets moving in the channel. In this case, the droplet deformation and velocity are reduced as their separation decreases; the reduction is influenced by the flow rate, viscosity ratio and more significantly the droplet size.     

COHESIVE ZONE MODELING OF INTERGRANULAR CRACKING OF INTERMETALLIC COMPOUNDS IN SOLDER JOINTS

为研究焊锡接点金属间化合物微结构对其微观-宏观力学行为的影响,采用Voronoi图算法构造了金属间化合物的晶粒尺度几何模型,通过在晶粒界面配置内聚力界面单元,提出了模拟金属间化合物晶粒界面裂纹起裂、扩展与连通的有限元数值模拟方法。基于该方法,研究了晶粒形状和晶粒界面缺陷对晶界微开裂模式和整体响应的影响,研究了金属间化合物微结构对焊锡接点强度和破坏模式的影响。结果表明,晶粒形状对整体强度影响不大,但对微裂纹开裂模式有影响。当考虑晶界随机缺陷时,强度较低的晶粒界面对整体强度影响较大。金属间化合物层的厚度对焊锡接点强度和破坏模式均有影响,而金属间化合物与焊料界面的粗糙度主要影响焊锡接点的破坏模式。     

Landau–De Gennes Theory of Nematic Liquid Crystals: the Oseen–Frank Limit and Beyond

We study global minimizers of a continuum Landau–De Gennes energy functional for nematic liquid crystals, in three-dimensional domains, subject to uniaxial boundary conditions. We analyze the physically relevant limit of small elastic constant and show that global minimizers converge strongly, in W ^1,2, to a global minimizer predicted by the Oseen–Frank theory for uniaxial nematic liquid crystals with constant order parameter. Moreover, the convergence is uniform in the interior of the domain, away from the singularities of the limiting Oseen–Frank global minimizer. We obtain results on the rate of convergence of the eigenvalues and the regularity of the eigenvectors of the Landau–De Gennes global minimizer. We also study the interplay between biaxiality and uniaxiality in Landau–De Gennes global energy minimizers and obtain estimates for various related quantities such as the biaxiality parameter and the size of admissible strongly biaxial regions.