Effect of particle geometry on phase transitions in two-dimensional liquid crystals

Using a version of density-functional theory which combines Onsager approximation and fundamental-measure theory for spatially nonuniform phases, we have studied the phase diagram of freely rotating hard rectangles and hard discorectangles. We find profound differences in the phase behavior of these models, which can be attributed to their different packing properties. Interestingly, bimodal orientational distribution functions are found in the nematic phase of hard rectangles, which cause a certain degree of biaxial order, albeit metastable with respect to spatially ordered phases. This feature is absent in discorectangles, which always show unimodal behavior. This result may be relevant in the light of recent experimental results which have confirmed the existence of biaxial phases. We expect that some perturbation of the particle shapes (either a certain degree of polydispersity or even bimodal dispersity in the aspect ratios) may actually destabilize spatially ordered phases thereby stabilizing the biaxial phase.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, to appear in JC

Stability of smectic phases in hard-rod mixtures

Using density-functional theory, we have analyzed the phase behavior of binary mixtures of hard rods of different lengths and diameters. Previous studies have shown a strong tendency of smectic phases of these mixtures to segregate and, in some circumstances, to form microsegregated phases. Our focus in the present work is on the formation of columnar phases which some studies, under some approximations, have shown to become thermodynamically stable prior to crystallization. Specifically we focus on the relative stability between smectic and columnar phases, a question not fully addressed in previous work. Our analysis is based on two complementary perspectives: on the one hand, an extended Onsager theory, which includes the full orientational degrees of freedom but with spatial and orientational correlations being treated in an approximate manner; on the other hand, we formulate a Zwanzig approximation of fundamental-measure theory on hard parallelepipeds, whereby orientations are restricted to be only along three mutually orthogonal axes, but correlations are faithfully represented. In the latter case novel, complete phase diagrams containing regions of stability of liquid-crystalline phases are calculated. Our findings indicate that the restricted-orientation approximation enhances the stability of columnar phases so as to preempt smectic order completely while, in the framework of the extended Onsager model, with full orientational degrees of freedom taken into account, columnar phases may preempt a large region of smectic stability in some mixtures, but some smectic order still persists.Comment: 14 pages, 16 figures. To appear in JC

Demixing behavior in two-dimensional mixtures of anisotropic hard bodies

Scaled particle theory for a binary mixture of hard discorectangles and for a binary mixture of hard rectangles is used to predict possible liquid-crystal demixing scenarios in two dimensions. Through a bifurcation analysis from the isotropic phase, it is shown that isotropic-nematic demixing is possible in two-dimensional liquid-crystal mixtures composed of hard convex bodies. This bifurcation analysis is tested against exact calculations of the phase diagrams in the framework of the restricted-orientation two-dimensional model (Zwanzig model). Phase diagrams of a binary mixture of hard discorectangles are calculated through the parametrization of the orientational distribution functions. The results show not only isotropic-nematic, but also nematic-nematic demixing ending in a critical point, as well as an isotropic-nematic-nematic triple point for a mixture of hard disks and hard discorectangles.Comment: 13 pages, 14 figures. To appear in PR

Depletion effects in smectic phases of hard rod--hard sphere mixtures

It is known that when hard spheres are added to a pure system of hard rods the stability of the smectic phase may be greatly enhanced, and that this effect can be rationalised in terms of depletion forces. In the present paper we first study the effect of orientational order on depletion forces in this particular binary system, comparing our results with those obtained adopting the usual approximation of considering the rods parallel and their orientations frozen. We consider mixtures with rods of different aspect ratios and spheres of different diameters, and we treat them within Onsager theory. Our results indicate that depletion effects, and consequently smectic stability, decrease significantly as a result of orientational disorder in the smectic phase when compared with corresponding data based on the frozen--orientation approximation. These results are discussed in terms of the $\tau$ parameter, which has been proposed as a convenient measure of depletion strength. We present closed expressions for $\tau$, and show that it is intimately connected with the depletion potential. We then analyse the effect of particle geometry by comparing results pertaining to systems of parallel rods of different shapes (spherocylinders, cylinders and parallelepipeds). We finally provide results based on the Zwanzig approximation of a Fundamental--Measure density--functional theory applied to mixtures of parallelepipeds and cubes of different sizes. In this case, we show that the $\tau$ parameter exhibits a linear asymptotic behaviour in the limit of large values of the hard--rod aspect ratio, in conformity with Onsager theory, as well as in the limit of large values of the ratio of rod breadth to cube side length, $d$, in contrast to Onsager approximation, which predicts $\tau\sim d^3$.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figure

Orientational ordering in hard rectangles: The role of three-body correlations

13 pages, 12 figures.-- PACS nrs.: 61.30.Gd, 64.70.Md, 64.10.+h, 61.20.Ja, 65.20.+w.-- ArXiv pre-print available at: http://arxiv.org/abs/cond-mat/0605238We investigate the effect of three-body correlations on the phase behavior of hard rectangle two-dimensional fluids. The third virial coefficient B3 is incorporated via an equation of state that recovers scaled particle theory for parallel hard rectangles. This coefficient, a functional of the orientational distribution function, is calculated by Monte Carlo integration, using an accurate parametrized distribution function, for various particle aspect ratios in the range of 1–25. A bifurcation analysis of the free energy calculated from the obtained equation of state is applied to find the isotropic (I)-uniaxial nematic (Nu) and isotropic-tetratic nematic (Nt) spinodals and to study the order of these phase transitions. We find that the relative stability of the Nt phase with respect to the isotropic phase is enhanced by the introduction of B3. Finally, we have calculated the complete phase diagram using a variational procedure and compared the results with those obtained from scaled particle theory and with Monte Carlo simulations carried out for hard rectangles with various aspect ratios. The predictions of our proposed equation of state as regards the transition densities between the isotropic and orientationally ordered phases for small aspect ratios are in fair agreement with simulations. Also, the critical aspect ratio below which the Nt phase becomes stable is predicted to increase due to three-body correlations, although the corresponding value is underestimated with respect to simulation.Y.M.-R. was supported by a Ramón y Cajal research contract from the Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología (Spain). This work is part of the research Projects No. BFM2003-0180, FIS2005-05243-C02-01, FIS2005-05243-C02-02 and FIS2004-05035-C03-02 of the Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia (Spain), and S-0505/ESP-0299 of Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid.Publicad

Brigada 17 de la Cruz Roja en Santa Clara, paradigma de humanismo

The Red Cross is an independent relief society, serving the humanitarian community and acting in different contexts. The Red Cross of Santa Clara, through the sanitary work of the 17th Brigade, deployed active participation in the military health during the taking of the city. Its brigade showed signs of humanism and respect in compliance with the principles and rules of International Humanitarian Law; also participated in the Literacy Campaign in the fight against bandits and farming, among other activities. Serve this material as a modest tribute to the dedicated work of the Red Cross and contribute to the formation of professional values ​​in the Cuban Public Health.La Cruz Roja es una sociedad de socorro independiente, al servicio de la comunidad y de carácter humanitario que actúa en diversos contextos. La Cruz Roja de Santa Clara, a través de la labor sanitaria de la Brigada 17, desplegó una activa participación en la sanidad militar durante la toma de dicha ciudad. Sus brigadistas dieron muestra de humanismo y respeto en el cumplimiento de los principios y las normas del Derecho Internacional Humanitario; además, participaron en la Campaña de Alfabetización, en la lucha contra bandidos y en labores agrícolas, entre otras actividades. Sirva este material como modesto homenaje a la abnegada labor de la Cruz Roja y contribuya a la formación de valores en los profesionales de la Salud Pública cubana

Study and development of low power consumption SRAMs on 28 nm FD-SOI CMOS process

Since analog circuit designs in CMOS nanometer (< 90 nm) nodes can be substantially affected by manufacturing process variations, circuit performance becomes more challenging to achieve efficient solutions by using analytical models. Extensive simulations are thus commonly required to provide a high yield. On the other hand, due to the fact that the classical bulk MOS structure is reaching scaling limits (< 32 nm), alternative approaches are being developed as successors, such as fully depleted silicon-oninsulator (FD-SOI), Multigate MOSFET, FinFETs, among others, and new design techniques emerge by taking advantage of the improved features of these devices. This thesis focused on the development of analytical expressions for the major performance parameters of the SRAM cache implemented in 28 nm FD-SOI CMOS, mainly to explore the transistor dimensions at low computational cost, thereby producing efficient designs in terms of energy consumption, speed and yield. By taking advantage of both low computational cost and close agreement results of the developed models, in this thesis we were able to propose a non-traditional sizing procedure for the simple 6T-SRAM cell, that unlike the traditional thin-cell design, transistor lengths are used as a design variable in order to reduce the static leakage. The single-P-well (SPW) structure in combination with reverse-body-biasing (RBB) technique were used to achieve a better balance between P-type and N-type transistors. As a result, we developed a 128 kB SRAM cache, whose post-layout simulations show that the circuit consumes an average energy per operation of 0.604 pJ/word-access (64 I/O bits) at supply voltage of 0.45 V and operation frequency of 40 MHz. The total chip area of the 128 kB SRAM cache is 0.060 mm2 .O projeto de circuitos analogicos em processos nanométricos CMOS ( < 90 nm) per substancialmente afetado pelas variacões do processo de fabricacão, sendo cada vez mais desafiador para os projetistas alcançar soluções eficientes no desempenho dos circuitos mediante o uso de modelos analíticos. Simulacões extensas com alto custo com- putacional sao normalmente requeridas para providenciar um correto funcionamento do circuito. Por outro lado, devido ao fato que a estrutura bulk-CMOS esta alcançando seus limites de escala (< 32 nm), outros transistores foram desenvolvidos como sucessores, tais como o fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI), Multigate MOSFET, entre outros, surgindo novas tecnicas de projeto que utilizam as características aprimoradas destes dispositivos. Dessa forma, esta tese de doutorado se foca no desenvolvimento de modelos analíticos dos parametros mais importantes do cache SRAM implementado em processo CMOS FD-SOI de 28 nm, principalmente para explorar as dimensõoes dos transistores com baixo custo computacional, e assim produzir solucões eficientes em termos de consumo de energia, velocidade e rendimento. Aproveitando o baixo custo computacional e a alta concordância dos modelos analíticos, nesta tese fomos capazes de propor um dimensionamento nao tradicional para a célula de memória 6T-SRAM, em que diferentemente é do classico dimensionamento "thin-cell”, os comprimentos dos transistores são utilizados como variável de projeto com o fim de reduzir o consumo estático de corrente. A estrutura single-P-well (SPW), combinada com a técnica reverse-body-biasing (RBB) foram utilizadas para alcançar um melhor balanço entre as correntes específicas dos transistores do tipo P e N

Surface-enhanced ordering and layer-thinning transitions in freely suspended smectic-A films

4 pages, 3 figures.-- PACS nrs.: 61.30.Cz, 64.70.Md, 68.45.Gd.We propose a physical mechanism which leads to surface-enhanced smectic-A ordering (SESO) at the free surface of a model liquid crystal. We also provide an explanation, based on a density-functional theory, for recent experimental results for the melting behavior of freely suspended smectic (FSS) films. It is shown that stepwise layer-thinning transitions do not usually occur during melting of FSS films, despite the presence of SESO. We find that thinning transitions similar to those observed experimentally occur under conditions such that the film interior melts to a nematic rather than isotropic liquid phase.This work was supported by the DGICyT of Spain (Grant No. PB94-0005-C02) and NSERC of Canada.Publicad

Interplay between anchoring and wetting at a nematic-substrate interface

We use a generalized van der Waals molecular theory to study a model substrate-nematic interface in the regime of complete wetting and in a situation of competing interactions at the interface. The analysis shows that an anchoring transition between states with planar and homeotropic director configuration may play the role of a prewetting transition, and that reentrant anchoring must generally occur. As a result one expects complete wetting in a finite temperature range. The study provides a general context within which anchoring and wetting phenomena can be relate

Context based configuration management system

A computer-based system for configuring and displaying information on changes in, and present status of, a collection of events associated with a project. Classes of icons for decision events, configurations and feedback mechanisms, and time lines (sequential and/or simultaneous) for related events are displayed. Metadata for each icon in each class is displayed by choosing and activating the corresponding icon. Access control (viewing, reading, writing, editing, deleting, etc.) is optionally imposed for metadata and other displayed information