title: Chirality-biased point defects dynamics on a disclination line in a nematic liquid crystal.
abstract: Chiral additives in the nematic liquid crystal can alter the dynamics of point defects moving on a disclination line. They exert a constant force on defects, leading to the bimodal distribution of distances between them at long times. The evolution of the system of defects in the presence of chiral additives provides a very direct proof of the existence of repulsive forces between the defects at large distances. We find that addition of a sufficient amount of chiral compound removes all point defects from the system. The process is studied in the system of 8CB (4-n-octyl-4'-cyanobiphenyl) doped with the chiral compound S811 (from Merck Co.) and in the computer simulations.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique, Ecole Normale Supérieure de Lyon, 46 Allée d'Italie, 69364 Lyon Cedex 07, France. zywot@ichf.edu.pl
authors.forename: Andrzej
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zywociński
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pawlak
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hołyst
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Oswald