Magneto-induced orientation transitions in nematic liquid crystals

Abstract

In tensor operator representation, the intermolecular potential and the total energy functional of nematic liquid crystals with elastic deformation and magnetic impurities has studied. The impact of the external field on the orientation molecular structure is considered as the variational problem of the energy functional minimum taking into account indirect interaction via magnetic impurities between the external field and anisotropy molecules. The threshold fields of onset of the collective reorientation of anisotropy molecules are determined by the deviation of the energy from the mentioned minimum corresponding to an initial equilibrium state of the nematic liquid crystal.