title: Dielectric shape dispersion and biaxial transitions in nematic liquid crystals.
abstract: Using two order tensors, we propose a mean-field model to describe the uniaxial and biaxial phases of nematogenic molecules presenting a shape dispersion of their biaxial dielectric susceptibility. We recover the classical isotropic-uniaxial-biaxial sequence of phases. The phase diagram exhibits a tricritical point, a feature that cannot be retraced in the other mean-field models established for molecules without shape dispersion.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mathematics, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland.
authors.forename: André M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Sonnet
authors.forename: Epifanio G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Virga
authors.forename: Georges E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Durand