AC electric fields cause soliton-like three-dimensional orientational fluctuations called "directrons" to form and rapidly propagate in confined films of liquid crystals (LCs), offering the basis of a new class of active soft matter (e.g., for accelerating mixing and transport processes in microscale chemical systems).
Our recent work shows that simple electric-field-driven waves in liquid crystals — called "directrons" — can spontaneously shift from orderly, predictable motion into chaotic, life-like behavior. As we turn up the voltage, these micro-scale disturbances start colliding, forming chains, and even splitting into "daughter" waves, mimicking the unpredictable adaptability seen in living cells and swarms. The work opens a new route to designing synthetic materials that can navigate and reconfigure on their own.
References
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​Singh, P. K.; Khan, S.A.; Das, S. Chaos in Liquid Crystal Directrons. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2602.22664
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Tang, X.; Atzin, N.; Mozaffari, A.; Das, S.; Abbott, N. L.; de Pablo, J. J. Generation and Propagation of Flexoelectricity-Induced Solitons in Nematic Liquid Crystals. ACS Nano 2024, 18 (16), 10768–10775. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.3c10800.
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Das, S.; Atzin, N.; Tang, X.; Mozaffari, A.; Pablo, J. de; Abbott, N. L. Jetting and Droplet Formation Driven by Interfacial Electrohydrodynamic Effects Mediated by Solitons in Liquid Crystals. Phys. Rev. Lett. 2023, 131 (9), 098101. https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.131.098101.
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Das, S.; Roh, S.; Atzin, N.; Mozaffari, A.; Tang, X.; De Pablo, J. J.; Abbott, N. L. Programming Solitons in Liquid Crystals Using Surface Chemistry. Langmuir 2022, 38 (11), 3575–3584. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.2c00231.
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Atzin, N.; Mozaffari, A.; Tang, X.; Das, S.; Abbott, N. L.; de Pablo, J. J. A Minimal Model of Solitons in Nematic Liquid Crystals. https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2210.08666.
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Tang, X.; Mozaffari, A.; Atzin, N.; Das, S.; Abbott, N. L.; de Pablo, J. J. Generation and Propagation of Solitary Waves in Nematic Liquid Crystals. https://doi.org/10.48550/arxiv.2211.01453.