[en] Using experiments and numerical simulations, we demonstrate that the curvature of microscale conduits allow programming of liquid crystal (LC) flows. Focusing on a nematic LC flowing through U- and L-shaped channels of rectangular cross-section, our results reveal that curved flow paths can trigger gradients of flow-induced director field in the transverse direction. The emergent director field feeds back into the flow field, ultimately leading to LC flows controlled by the channel curvature. This curvature-mediated flow control, identified by polarizing optical microscopy and supported by the nematofluidic solutions, offers novel concepts in LC-based microfluidic valves and throttles, wherein the throughput distribution is determined by the Ericksen number and the variations in the local curvature. Finally, this work highlights the role of deformation history on flow-induced director alignments, when the viscous and elastic effects comparable in strength.
Disciplines :
Physics
Author, co-author :
Fedorowicz, Kamil
Prosser
Sengupta, Anupam ; University of Luxembourg > Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine (FSTM) > Department of Physics and Materials Science (DPHYMS)
External co-authors :
yes
Language :
English
Title :
Curvature-mediated Programming of Liquid Crystal Microflows
Publication date :
29 August 2023
Journal title :
Soft Matter
ISSN :
1744-6848
Publisher :
Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, United Kingdom
Bruus H., Theoretical Microfluidics, Oxford University Press, Oxford (UK), 2008
Whitesides G. M. Nature 2006 442 368 373
Pfohl T. Mugele F. Seemann R. Herminghaus S. Chem. Phys. Chem. 2003 4 1291 1298
Kunti G. Dhar J. Bhattacharya A. Chakraborty S. Phys. Fluids 2019 9 092003
Paratore F. Bacheva V. Bercovici M. Kaigala G. V. Nat. Rev. Chem. 2021 6 70 80
Dressler O. J. Maceiczyk R. M. Chang S.-I. deMello A. J. SLAS Discovery 2014 19 483 496
Oh K. W. Micromachines 2020 11 370
Beebe D. J. Mensing G. A. Walker G. M. Annu. Rev. Biomed. Eng. 2002 4 261 286
Priyadarshani J. Roy T. Das S. Chakraborty S. ACS Biomater. Sci. Eng. 2021 7 483 496
Sengupta A. Herminghaus S. Bahr C. Liq. Cryst. Rev. 2014 2 73 110
Sengupta A. Tkalec U. Ravnik M. Yeomans J. M. Bahr C. Herminghaus S. Phys. Rev. Lett. 2013 110 048303
Sengupta A. Bahr C. Herminghaus S. Soft Matter 2013 9 7251 7260
Ravnik M. Yeomans J. M. Phys. Rev. Lett. 2013 110 026001
Kos Z. Ravnik M. Sci. Rep. 2020 10 1446
Stewart I., The Static and Dynamic Continuum Theory of Liquid Crystals: A Mathematical Introduction, Taylor and Francis, London, 2004
de Gennes P. and Prost J., The Physics of Liquid Crystals, Oxford Science Publications, 1993
Xu Y. Rather A. M. Yao Y. Fang J.-C. Mamtani R. S. Bennett R. K. A. Atta R. G. Adera S. Tkalec U. Wang X. Sci. Adv. 2021 7 eabi7607
Khoshbin Z. Abnous K. Taghdisi S. M. Verdian A. Trends Anal. Chem. 2021 142 116325
Woltman S. J. Jay G. D. Crawford G. P. Nat. Mater. 2007 6 116325
Fedorowicz K. Prosser R. Liq. Cryst. 2023 1 24
Pieranski P. Guyon E. Phys. Lett. A 1974 49 237 238
Sengupta A. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2013 14 22826 22844
Steffen P. Stellamanns E. Sengupta A. Phys. Fluids 2021 33 072005
Na Y.-J. Yoon T.-Y. Park S. Lee B. Lee S.-D. Chem. Phys. Chem. 2010 11 101 104
Wee D. Hwang S. H. Song Y. S. Youn J. R. Soft Matter 2016 12 3868 3876
Cuennet J. G. Vasdekis A. E. Psaltis D. Lab Chip 2013 13 2721 2726
Sengupta A. Herminghaus S. Bahr C. Appl. Phys. Lett. 2012 101 164101
Eichler J.-C. Skutnik R. A. Sengupta A. Mazza M. G. Schoen M. Mol. Phys. 2019 117 3715 3733
Liu Y. Cheng D. Lin I.-H. Abbott N. L. Jiang H. Lab Chip 2012 12 3746 3753
Vettese D. Nat. Photonics 2010 4 752 754
Cuennet J. G. Vasdekis A. E. De Sio L. Psaltis D. Nat. Photonics 2011 5 234 238
Čopar S. Kos Z. Emeršič T. Tkalec U. Nat. Commun. 2020 11 59
Denniston C. Orlandini E. Yeomans J. M. Phys. Rev. E 2001 63 056702
Denniston C. Orlandini E. Yeomans J. Comput. Theor. Polym. Sci. 2001 11 389 395
Kleman M. and Lavrentovich O. D., Soft Matter Physics: An Introduction, Springer New York, 2003
Quintans-Carou J. Duffy B. R. Mottram N. J. Wilson S. K. Phys. Fluids 2006 18 027105
Cruz P. A. Tome M. F. Stewart I. W. McKee S. J. Comput. Phys. 2013 247 109 136
Rey A. D. Denn M. M. Annu. Rev. Fluid Mech. 2002 34 233 266
Fedorowicz K. Prosser R. J. Non-Newton. Fluid Mech. 2022 310 104949
Sengupta A., Topological microfluidics - nematic liquid crystals and nematic colloids in microfluidic environment, Springer, 2013
Mondal S. Griffiths I. M. Charlet F. Majumdar A. Fluids 2018 3 39
Srinivasarao M., Spontaneous Emergence of Chirality, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, 2021, ch. 5, pp. 311-346
Nayani K. Chang R. Fu J. Ellis P. W. Fernandez-Nieves A. Park J. O. Srinivasarao M. Nat. Commun. 2015 6 8067
Fu J. Nayani K. Park J. O. Srinivasarao M. NPG Asia Mater. 2017 9 e393
Tone C. M. Zizzari A. Spina L. Bianco M. De Santo M. P. Arima V. Barberi R. C. Ciuchi F. Langmuir 2023 39 6134 6141
Dean W. R. Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A 1928 121402 121420
Di Carlo D. Lab Chip 2009 9 3038 3046
Steinberg V. Annu. Rev. Fluid Mech. 2021 53 27 58
Fan Y. Tanner R. I. Phan-Thien N. J. Fluid Mech. 2001 440 327 357
Robertson A. Muller S. Int. J. Non-Linear Mech. 1996 31 1 20
Sengupta A. Pieper C. Enderlein J. Bahr C. Herminghaus S. Soft Matter 2013 9 1937 1946
Giomi L. Kos Z. Ravnik M. Sengupta A. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U. S. A. 2017 114 E5771 E5777
Kos Z. Ravnik M. Zumer S. Liq. Cryst. 2017 44 2161 2171
Fedorowicz K. Prosser R. J. Non-Newton. Fluid Mech 2022 300 104716
Fedorowicz K. Prosser R. Phys. Fluids 2022 34 063106
Leslie F. M. Q. J. Mech. Appl. Math. 1966 19 357 370
Beris A. and Edwards B., Thermodynamics of Flowing Systems with an Internal Microstructure, Oxford University Press, 1994
Fedorowicz K., Source code of the rheoFoamLC solver and the implementation of constitutive equations, 2022, https://github.com/KamilFedorowicz
Ravnik M. Zumer S. Liq. Cryst. 2009 36 1201 1214
Sengupta A. Schulz B. Ouskova E. Bahr C. Microfluid. Nanofluid. 2012 13 941 955
Sengupta A. Liq. Cryst. 2014 41 290 301
Dhont J. K. G. Lettinga M. P. Dogic Z. Lenstra T. A. J. Wang H. Rathgeber S. Carletto P. Willner L. Frielinghaus H. Lindner P. Faraday Discuss. 2003 123 157 172
Sharma A. Ong I. L. H. Sengupta A. Crystals 2021 11 35
Ulaganathan V. Sengupta A. J. Colloid Interface Sci. 2023 649 302 312
