Abstract

Polar order, i.e., ferromagnetic or ferroelectric, in 3D liquids is experimentally rarely observed. In this talk I will discuss the reason for this and show two examples of how shape of constituents can promote polar order. The first example is a ferromagnetic liquid phase, which emerges in a suspension of magnetic nanoplatelets in isotropic solvent as a result of platelets’ shape. The second example is antiferroelectric splay nematic phase, which appears in materials made of wedge-shaped molecules with large electric dipole moments.
Co-Authors: Darja Lisjak1, Patricija Hribar Boštjančič1, Borut Lampret1, Luka Cmok1, Žiga Gregorin1, Natan Osterman1, Nerea Sebastian1, Martin Čopič1, Joachim Kohlbrecher2, Juergen Klepp3, Richard J. Mandle4, Rachel R. Parker4, Adrian C. Whitwood4, John W. Goodby4
1J. Stefan Institute, Slovenia; 2PSI Villigen, Switzerland; 3University of Vienna, Austria; 4University of York, UK