arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Pingwen Zhang.
This note serves to provide additional details for the proof of Lemma 3.6 in our paper [Liu, Zhang and Zhang, Comm. Math. Sci., 3(2005), pp.201-218]. Moreover, we will also present an alternative, yet simpler, proof based on arguments in [Wang, Zhang and Zhang, CPAM, 68(2015), no. 8, 1326-1398].
We construct a tensor model for nematic phases of bent-core molecules from molecular theory. The form of free energy is determined by molecular symmetry, which includes the couplings and derivatives of a vector and two second-order tensors, with the coefficients determined by molecular parameters. We use the model to study the nematic phases resulted from the hard-core potential. Unlike most macroscopic models, we are able to obtain the phase diagram about the molecular parameters, but not merely some phenomenological coefficients. The tensor model is applicable to other molecules with the same symmetry, which we demonstrate by studying the phase diagram of star molecules.
The Laplacian $Δ$ is the infinitesimal generator of isotropic Brownian motion, being the limit process of normal diffusion, while the fractional Laplacian $Δ^{β/2}$ serves as the infinitesimal generator of the limit process of isotropic Lévy process. Taking limit, in some sense, means that the operators can approximate the physical process well after sufficient long time. We introduce the nonlocal operators (being effective from the starting time), which describe the general processes undergoing normal diffusion. For anomalous diffusion, we extend to the anisotropic fractional Laplacian $Δ_m^{β/2}$ and the tempered one $Δ_m^{β/2,λ}$ in $\mathbb{R}^n$. Their definitions are proved to be equivalent to an alternative one in Fourier space. Based on these new nonlocal diffusion operators, we further derive the deterministic governing equations of some interesting statistical observables of the very general jump processes with multiple internal states. Finally, we consider the associated initial and boundary value problems and prove their well-posedness of the Galerkin weak formulation in $\mathbb{R}^n$. To obtain the coercivity, we claim that the probability density function $m(Y)$ should be nondegenerate.
We construct the molecular model and the tensor model for the dynamics of the nematic phases of bent-core molecules and star molecules in incompressible fluid. We start from the molecular interaction and the molecule--fluid friction, and write down a general formulation based on the molecular shape and the free energy. Then we incorporate an Onsager-theory-based static tensor model that is determined by the molecular shape. In this way, the terms in the molecular model are fully determined by the molecular shape and expressed by physical parameters. For bent-core molecules and star molecules, the model shares the same form, but is different in the coefficients. With the polar interaction and elastic energy taken into account, and the convection and diffusion included both spatially and orientationally, the model is suitable for inhomogeneous flows. We adopt the quasi-equilibrium approximation to derive the tensor model with energy dissipation maintained. Numerical simulation is carried out focusing on the shear flow problem using both the molecular and the tensor models. We choose the parameters near the transition region of different equilibrium nematic phases and examine the effect of molecular shape on the flow modes. The tensor model proves to exhibit all the flow modes found in the molecular model.
For characterizing the Brownian motion in a bounded domain: $Ω$, it is well-known that the boundary conditions of the classical diffusion equation just rely on the given information of the solution along the boundary of a domain; on the contrary, for the Lévy flights or tempered Lévy flights in a bounded domain, it involves the information of a solution in the complementary set of $Ω$, i.e., $\mathbb{R}^n\backslash Ω$, with the potential reason that paths of the corresponding stochastic process are discontinuous. Guided by probability intuitions and the stochastic perspectives of anomalous diffusion, we show the reasonable ways, ensuring the clear physical meaning and well-posedness of the partial differential equations (PDEs), of specifying `boundary' conditions for space fractional PDEs modeling the anomalous diffusion. Some properties of the operators are discussed, and the well-posednesses of the PDEs with generalized boundary conditions are proved.
We propose a fast algorithm for evaluating the moments of Bingham distribution. The calculation is done by piecewise rational approximation, where interpolation and Gaussian integrals are utilized. Numerical test shows that the algorithm reaches the maximal absolute error less than 5e-8 remarkably faster than adaptive numerical quadrature. We apply the algorithm to a model for liquid crystals with the Bingham distribution to examine the defect patterns of rod-like molecules confined in a sphere, and find a different pattern from the Landau-de Gennes theory.
We propose a general framework of computing interfacial structures between two modulated phases. Specifically we propose to use a computational box consisting of two half spaces, each occupied by a modulated phase with given position and orientation. The boundary conditions and basis functions are chosen to be commensurate with the bulk structures. It is observed that the ordered nature of modulated structures stabilizes the interface, which enables us to obtain optimal interfacial structures by searching local minima of the free energy landscape. The framework is applied to the Landau-Brazovskii model to investigate interfaces between modulated phases with different relative positions and orientations. Several types of novel complex interfacial structures are obtained from the calculations.
In this paper, we prove the stability of half-degree point defect profiles in $\mathbb{R}^2$ for the nematic liquid crystal within Landau-de Gennes model.
We propose a general framework of computing interfacial structure. If an ordered phase is involved, the interfacial structure can be obtained by simply minimizing the free energy with compatible boundary conditions. The framework is applied to Landau- Brazovskii model and works efficiently.
Defects arise when nematic liquid crystals are under topological constraints at the boundary. Recently the study of defects has drawn a lot of attention. In this paper, we investigate the relationship between two-dimensional defects and three-dimensional defects within nematic liquid crystals confined in a shell under the Landau-de Gennes model. We use a highly accurate spectral method to numerically solve the Landau- de Gennes model to get the detailed static structures of defects. Interestingly, the solution is radial-invariant when the thickness of the shell is sufficiently small. As the shell thickness increase, the solution undergo symmetry break to reconfigure the disclination lines. We study this three-dimensional reconfiguration of disclination lines in detail under different boundary conditions. We also discuss the topological charge of defects in two- and three-dimensional spaces within the tensor model.
Bilayer membranes self-assembled from amphiphilic molecules such as lipids, surfactants and block copolymers are ubiquitous in biological and physiochemical systems. The shape and structure of bilayer membranes depend crucially on their mechanical properties such surface tension, bending moduli and line tension. Understanding how the molecular property of the amphiphiles determine the structure and mechanics of the self-assembled bilayers requires a molecularly detailed theoretical framework. The self-consistent field theory provides such a theoretical framework, which is capable of accurately predicting mechanical parameters of self-assembled bilayer membranes. In this mini review we summarize the formulation of the self-consistent field theory, as exemplified by a model system composed of flexible amphiphilic chains dissolved in hydrophilic polymeric solvents, and its application to the study of self-assembled bilayer membranes.
The existing experiments and simulations suggest that the molecular symmetry is always transmitted to homogeneous phases in liquid crystals. It has been proved for rod-like molecules. We conjecture that it holds for three other symmetries, and prove it for some molecules of these symmetries.
In this article, we discuss the stability of soft quasicrystalline phases in a coupled-mode Swift-Hohenberg model for three-component systems, where the characteristic length scales are governed by the positive-definite gradient terms. Classic two-mode approximation method and direct numerical minimization are applied to the model. In the latter approach, we apply the projection method to deal with the potentially quasiperiodic ground states. A variable cell method of optimizing the shape and size of higher-dimensional periodic cell is developed to minimize the free energy with respect to the order parameters. Based on the developed numerical methods, we rediscover decagonal and dodecagonal quasicrystalline phases, and find diverse periodic phases and complex modulated phases. Furthermore, phase diagrams are obtained in various phase spaces by comparing the free energies of different candidate structures. It does show not only the important roles of system parameters, but also the effect of optimizing computational domain. In particular, the optimization of computational cell allows us to capture the ground states and phase behavior with higher fidelity. We also make some discussions on our results and show the potential of applying our numerical methods to a larger class of mean-field free energy functionals.
In this article, we study the new Q-tensor model previously derived from Onsager's molecular theory by Han \textit{et al.} [Arch. Rational Mech. Anal., 215.3 (2014), pp. 741-809] for static liquid crystal modeling. Taking density and Q-tensor as order parameters, the new Q-tensor model not only characterizes important phases while capturing density variation effects, but also remains computationally tractable and efficient. We report the results of two numerical applications of the model, namely the isotropic--nematic--smectic-A--smectic-C phase transitions and the isotropic--nematic interface problem, in which density variations are indispensable. Meanwhile, we show the connections of the new Q-tensor model with classical models including generalized Landau-de Gennes models, generalized McMillan models, and the Chen-Lubensky model. The new Q-tensor model is the pivot and an appropriate trade-off between the classical models in three scales.
The relative stability of two-dimensional soft quasicrystals is examined using a recently developed projection method which provides a unified numerical framework to compute the free energy of periodic crystal and quasicrystals. Accurate free energies of numerous ordered phases, including dodecagonal, decagonal and octagonal quasicrystals, are obtained for a simple model, i.e. the Lifshitz-Petrich free energy functional, of soft quasicrystals with two length-scales. The availability of the free energy allows us to construct phase diagrams of the system, demonstrating that, for the Lifshitz-Petrich model, the dodecagonal and decagonal quasicrystals can become stable phases, whereas the octagonal quasicrystal stays as a metastable phase.
In this paper, we derive the sharp interface model of the nematic-isotropic phase transition from the Landau-de Gennes theory by using the matched asymptotic expansion method. The model includes the evolution equation of the velocity and director field of the liquid crystal, the sharp interface and Young-Laplace jump condition on the interface.
In this paper, we consider a hydrodynamic $Q$-tensor system for nematic liquid crystal flow, which is derived from Doi-Onsager molecular theory by the Bingham closure. We first prove the existence and uniqueness of local strong solution. Furthermore, by taking Deborah number goes to zero and using the Hilbert expansion method, we present a rigorous derivation from the molecule-based $Q$-tensor theory to the Ericksen-Leslie theory.
Defects in liquid crystals are of great practical importance and theoretical interest. Despite tremendous efforts, predicting the location and transition of defects under various topological constraint and external field remains to be a challenge. We investigate defect patterns of nematic liquid crystals confined in three-dimensional spherical droplet and two-dimensional disk under different boundary conditions, within the Landau-de Gennes model. We implement a spectral method that numerically solves the Landau-de Gennes model with high accuracy, which allows us to study the detailed static structure of defects. We observe five types of defect structures. Among them the 1/2-disclination lines are the most stable structure at low temperature. Inspired by numerical results, we obtain the profile of disclination lines analytically. Moreover, the connection and difference between defect patterns under the Landau-de Gennes model and the Oseen-Frank model are discussed. Finally, four conjectures are made to summarize some important characteristics of defects in the Landau-de Gennes theory. This work is a continuing effort to deepen our understanding on defect patterns in nematic liquid crystals.