One of the principal activities within the Continuum Mechanics group is the mathematical modelling of macroscopic effects in thermotropic liquid crystals.
Current interests in this area include:
- modelling of flow induced switching in weakly anchored nematic cells
- modelling of chevrons and flow effects in smectic liquid crystals
- modelling of defect motion in nematic liquid crystals
- modelling of effects associated with the application of external electric and magnetic fields
For those interested in learning more about the subject there is a short Introduction to Liquid Crystals.
There are many industrial collaborators connected to this research including Sharp, DERA Malvern, Hewlett-Packard as well as academic groups at Bristol, Exeter, Oxford, Manchester and Southampton. In this area the group enjoys valuable European links, primarily with Orsay (France), Gothenburg (Sweden), Pavia (Italy) and Calabria (Italy) through an EU network.
Continuum Mechanics Group Posters - these provide some background into our research