Droplets and droplet lattices on freely suspended smectic films in microgravity

ORAL

Abstract

Free-standing bubbles of smectic A liquid crystals with film thicknesses of few nanometers were explored under microgravity conditions on the International Space Station (ISS) to analyse the behaviour of liquid inclusions in the films. Microdroplets created in the films self-organize into nearly regular triangular lattices. We analyse the lattice parameters and droplet dynamics to understand fundamentals of hydrodynamics in quasi-twodimensional systems and to extract smectic material parameters.

*This study was funded by NASA Grant NNX-13AQ81G (OASIS),
NSF MRSEC Grant DMR 1420736,
DLR Grants OASIS-Co 50WM1127 and 50WM1430,
DFG Grant STA 425/40,
Central Research Institute for Machine Building (TsNIIMASh).

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Presenters

  • Ralf Stannarius

    • Institute for Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Exp. Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University

Authors

  • Ralf Stannarius

    • Institute for Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Exp. Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University

  • Torsten Trittel

    • Institute for Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Exp. Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University

  • Kirsten Harth

    • University of Twente
    • Physics of Fluids and Max Planck Center of Complex Fluid Dynamics, University of Twente
    • Institute of Exp. Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute for Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University

  • Christoph Klopp

    • Institute for Experimental Physics, Otto von Guericke University
    • Institute of Exp. Physics, Otto von Guericke University

  • Pavel Dolganov

    • Institute of Solid State Physics
    • Institute of Solid State Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences

  • Nikita Shuravin

    • Institute of Solid State Physics
    • Institute of Solid State Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences

  • Vladimir Dolganov

    • Institute of Solid State Physics
    • Institute of Solid State Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences

  • Eric Minor

    • Physics, Univ of Colorado
    • Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder

  • Cheol Park

    • Physics, Univ of Colorado
    • Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder

  • Joseph MacLennan

    • Physics, Univ of Colorado
    • Physics Department, Univ of Colorado Boulder
    • Physics, Univ of Colorado - Boulder
    • Soft Materials Research Center, University of Colorado, Boulder
    • Department of Physics, University of Colorado Boulder