Eur. Phys. J. E (2013) 36: 83
https://doi.org/10.1140/epje/i2013-13083-2

Regular Article

Response of constrained glassy splay-bend and twist nematic sheets to light and heat

CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, University of Science and Technology of China, 230026, Hefei, Anhui, P.R. China

^* e-mail: lhhe@ustc.edu.cn

Received: 9 March 2013
Revised: 9 June 2013
Accepted: 11 June 2013
Published online: 9 August 2013

Abstract

A general approach is proposed to analyze the complex photo- or thermo-response of glassy splay-bend and twist nematic sheets with boundary constraints. The governing equations are two-dimensional, as in the classical plate theory. However, the solution can generate exact three-dimensional displacement and stress distributions within the interior of the sheets, except the boundary layer whose width is of the same order of the sheet thickness.