Tensor torsional elasticity

The condensed notation for the elements of the torsional elasticity tensor is normally used, and the torsional strain elements are written as a column vector with the compo-... 

The strain tensor must conform to the symmetry of the liquid crystal phase, and as a result, for nonpolar, nonchiral uniaxial phases there are ten nonzero components of kij, of which four are independent ( i i, 22> A 33 and 24)- These material constants are known as torsional elastic constants for splay (k, 1), twist ( 22) bend ( 33) and saddle-splay ( 24) terms in 24 do not contribute to the free energy for configurations in which the director is constant within a plane, or parallel to a plane. The simplest torsional strains considered for liquid crystals are one dimensional, and so neglect of 24 is reasonable, but for more complex director configurations and at surfaces, k24 can contribute to the free energy [7]. In particular 24 is important for curved interfaces of liquid crystals, and so must be included in the description of lyotropic and membrane liquid crystals [8]. Evaluation of Eq. (16) making the stated assumptions, leads to [9] ... 

Let us assume that a liquid is incompressible, B oo, and discuss orientational (or torsimial) elasticity of a nematic. In a solid, the stress is caused by a change in the distance between neighbor points in a nematic the stress is caused by the curvature of the director field. Now a curvature tensor dnjdxj plays the role of the strain tensor ,y. Here, indices i,j = 1, 2, 3 and Xj correspond to the Cartesian frame axes. The linear relationship between the curvature and the torsional stress (i.e., Hooke s law) is assumed to be valid. The stress can be caused by boundary conditions, electric or magnetic field, shear, mechanical shot, etc. We are going to write the key expression for the distortion fi-ee energy density gji, related to the director field curvature . To discuss a more general case, we assume that gji t depends not only on quadratic combinations of derivatives dnjdxj, but also on their linear combinations ... 

Most extensive quantitative studies of mechanical properties have been done on three-dimensional small-strain elastic behavior. The strain tensor ytj is related to the applied stress tensor ct / through a fourth-order compliance tensor Sijki, ie, Yij — SijkicTki- The compliance tensor components are related to the state of orientation some of the Sijki components have been determined as a function of draw ratio by measuring apparent moduli cut at different angles from drawn sheets as well as by torsional studies (128-130). 

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