In equilibrium, disorder conspires with topological defects to redefine the ordered states of matter in systems as diverse as crystals, superconductors, and liquid crystals. Far from equilibrium, ...however, the consequences of quenched disorder on active condensed matter remain virtually uncharted. Here, we reveal a state of strongly disordered active matter with no counterparts in equilibrium: a dynamical vortex glass. Combining microfluidic experiments and theory, we show how colloidal flocks collectively cruise through disordered environments without relaxing the topological singularities of their flows. The resulting state is highly dynamical but the flow patterns, shaped by a finite density of frozen vortices, are stationary and exponentially degenerated. Quenched isotropic disorder acts as a random gauge field turning active liquids into dynamical vortex glasses. We argue that this robust mechanism should shape the collective dynamics of a broad class of disordered active matter, from synthetic active nematics to collections of living cells exploring heterogeneous media.
Coupling between flows and material properties imbues rheological matter with its wide-ranging applicability, hence the excitement for harnessing the rheology of active fluids for which internal ...structure and continuous energy injection lead to spontaneous flows and complex, out-of-equilibrium dynamics. We propose and demonstrate a convenient, highly tunable method for controlling flow, topology, and composition within active films. Our approach establishes rheological coupling via the indirect presence of fully submersed micropatterned structures within a thin, underlying oil layer. Simulations reveal that micropatterned structures produce effective virtual boundaries within the superjacent active nematic film due to differences in viscous dissipation as a function of depth. This accessible method of applying position-dependent, effective dissipation to the active films presents a nonintrusive pathway for engineering active microfluidic systems.
We study how confinement transforms the chaotic dynamics of bulk microtubule-based active nematics into regular spatiotemporal patterns. For weak confinements in disks, multiple continuously ...nucleating and annihilating topological defects self-organize into persistent circular flows of either handedness. Increasing confinement strength leads to the emergence of distinct dynamics, in which the slow periodic nucleation of topological defects at the boundary is superimposed onto a fast procession of a pair of defects. A defect pair migrates toward the confinement core over multiple rotation cycles, while the associated nematic director field evolves from a distinct double spiral toward a nearly circularly symmetric configuration. The collapse of the defect orbits is punctuated by another boundary-localized nucleation event, that sets up long-term doubly periodic dynamics. Comparing experimental data to a theoretical model of an active nematic reveals that theory captures the fast procession of a pair of +1/2 defects, but not the slow spiral transformation nor the periodic nucleation of defect pairs. Theory also fails to predict the emergence of circular flows in the weak confinement regime. The developed confinement methods are generalized to more complex geometries, providing a robust microfluidic platform for rationally engineering 2D autonomous flows.
Defect dynamics in active nematics Giomi, Luca; Bowick, Mark J; Mishra, Prashant ...
Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A: Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences,
11/2014, Letnik:
372, Številka:
2029
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Topological defects are distinctive signatures of liquid crystals. They profoundly affect the viscoelastic behaviour of the fluid by constraining the orientational structure in a way that inevitably ...requires global changes not achievable with any set of local deformations. In active nematic liquid crystals, topological defects not only dictate the global structure of the director, but also act as local sources of motion, behaving as self-propelled particles. In this article, we present a detailed analytical and numerical study of the mechanics of topological defects in active nematic liquid crystals.
In this work, we report a direct measurement of the forces exerted by a tubulin/kinesin active nematic gel as well as its complete rheological characterization, including the quantification of its ...shear viscosity,
, and its activity parameter,
. For this, we develop a method that allows us to rapidly photo-polymerize compliant elastic inclusions in the continuously remodeling active system. Moreover, we quantitatively settle long-standing theoretical predictions, such as a postulated relationship encoding the intrinsic time scale of the active nematic in terms of
and
. In parallel, we infer a value for the nematic elasticity constant,
, by combining our measurements with the theorized scaling of the active length scale. On top of the microrheology capabilities, we demonstrate strategies for defect encapsulation, quantification of defect mechanics, and defect interactions, enabled by the versatility of the microfabrication strategy that allows to combine elastic motifs of different shapes and stiffnesses that are fabricated in situ.
Active matter comprises individual units that convert energy into mechanical motion. In many examples, such as bacterial systems and biofilament assays, constituent units are elongated and can give ...rise to local nematic orientational order. Such “active nematics” systems have attracted much attention from both theorists and experimentalists. However, despite intense research efforts, data-driven quantitative modeling has not been achieved, a situation mainly due to the lack of systematic experimental data and to the large number of parameters of current models. Here, we introduce an active nematics system made of swarming filamentous bacteria. We simultaneously measure orientation and velocity fields and show that the complex spatiotemporal dynamics of our system can be quantitatively reproduced by a type of microscopic model for active suspensions whose important parameters are all estimated from comprehensive experimental data. This provides unprecedented access to key effective parameters and mechanisms governing active nematics. Our approach is applicable to different types of dense suspensions and shows a path toward more quantitative active matter research.
There has been recent interest in the evolution and cosmological consequences of global axionic string networks, and in particular in the issue of whether or not these networks reach the ...scale-invariant scaling solution that is known to exist for the simpler Goto–Nambu and Abelian–Higgs string networks. This is relevant for determining the amount and spectrum of axions they produce. We use the canonical velocity-dependent one-scale model for cosmic defect network evolution to study the evolution of these global networks, confirming the presence of deviations to scale-invariant evolution and in agreement with the most recent numerical simulations. We also quantify the cosmological impact of these corrections and discuss how the model can be used to extrapolate the results of numerical simulations, which have a limited dynamic range, to the full cosmological evolution of the networks, enabling robust predictions of their consequences. Our analysis suggests that around the QCD scale, when the global string network is expected to disappear and produce most of the axions, the number of global strings per Hubble patch should be around ξ∼4.2, but also highlights the need for additional high-resolution numerical simulations.
We propose a novel technique to probe shape of a single microbe embedded in a nematic liquid crystal (NLC) sample by observing geometry of dark brushes with optical microscope using a cross-polarizer ...set up. Assuming certain anchoring conditions for the NLC director at the surface of the microbe, we determine the resulting shapes of brushes using numerical simulations. Our results suggest that for asymmetrical microbes (such as cylindrical shaped bacteria/viruses), resulting brushes may carry the imprints of this asymmetry (e.g. the aspect ratio of cylindrical shape) at relatively large distances to be able to be seen using simple optical microscopy even for microbe sizes in few tens to few hundred nanometer range.
•We show that brush geometry in a crossed polarizer setup can probe shapes of microbes in a nematic liquid crystal sample.•We determine the resulting shapes of brushes using numerical simulations.•We find that for cylindrical microbes, brushes carry the imprints of aspect ratio of cylindrical shape.•This can be detected using optical microscopy, even for microbe sizes of few tens to few hundred nanometers.•For spherical microbes, e.g. corona virus, symmetric brushes can help distinguishing from asymmetric impurities/microbes.
Rechargeable Zn–air batteries have received extensive attention due to their use of nontoxic materials, safety, and high energy density. However, the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen ...evolution reaction (OER) at the air electrode of Zn–air batteries both suffer from slow kinetics, limiting their commercialization development. Herein, we prepared Co, N, and S co-doped hollow carbon nanoboxes (Co–N/S-CNBs) rich in topological defects using polyphenylene sulfide (PPS) as a sulfur-rich carbon source. Critically, by utilizing the self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS), PPS can avoid melting, while simultaneously enabling the catalyst to take on a unique hollow structure. Additional post-treatment to introduce Co and N atoms as active centers further increases the defect sites and microporous structures of the catalyst. Under alkaline electrolytes, the Co–N/S-CNBs enabled Zn–air batteries to exhibit excellent bifunctional catalytic activity for both ORR and OER, surpassing commercial catalysts. Chemical analysis showed that the cracking loss of small molecules from PPS during pyrolysis is the main reason for the formation of topological defects, where the defect sites act as active centers to enhance the catalytic performance. Overall, this work provides new insights into the mechanism of how defects are formed in such a catalyst, as well as shows how a high-performance bifunctional electrocatalyst can be utilized for practical Zn–air batteries.
Electronic states at domain walls in bilayer graphene are studied by analyzing their four- and two-band continuum models, by performing numerical calculations on the lattice, and by using quantum ...geometric arguments. The continuum theories explain the distinct electronic properties of boundary modes localized near domain walls formed by interlayer electric field reversal, by interlayer stacking reversal, and by simultaneous reversal of both quantities. Boundary mode properties are related to topological transitions and gap closures, which occur in the bulk Hamiltonian parameter space. The important role played by intervalley coupling effects not directly captured by the continuum model is addressed using lattice calculations for specific domain wall structures.
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