2001/06/06 by D. van Effenterre, R. Ober, M. P. Valignat +2 · 1 citation
Computer Science · Engineering · Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Fluid Dynamics and Thin Films #Liquid Crystal Research Advancements #Nonlinear Dynamics and Pattern Formation #cond-mat.soft
paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.87.125701
5 pages, 3 figures, submitted to PRL on the 26th of April
arxiv created 2001/06/06 · openalex publication_date 2001/08/31 · arxiv updated 2009/11/30 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
The behavior as a function of temperature of very thin films (10 to 200 nm) of pentylcyanobiphenyl on silicon substrates is reported. In the vicinity of the nematic-isotropic transition we observe a coexistence of two regions of different thicknesses: thick regions are in the nematic state while thin ones are in the isotropic state. Moreover, the transition temperature is shifted downward following a 1/h(2) law ( h is the film thickness). Microscope observations and small-angle x-ray scattering allowed us to draw a phase diagram which is explained in terms of a binary first-order phase transition where thickness plays the role of an order parameter.