Eur. Phys. J. E (2021) 44: 112
https://doi.org/10.1140/epje/s10189-021-00120-y

Regular Article - Soft Matter

Behavior of chiral active nematics confined to nanoscopic circular region

Institute for Problems of Mechanical Engineering, Russian Academy of Sciences, Bolshoi 61, V. O., St., 199178, Saint Petersburg, Russia

^a miran@mail.ru

Received: 12 April 2021
Accepted: 26 August 2021
Published online: 2 September 2021

Abstract

We performed molecular dynamic simulations of a model active nematic confined to a two-dimensional nanoscopic circular region under both tangential and radial anchoring boundary conditions. This active material is assumed to be composed of elongated chiral particles which interact with each other by means of isotropic Lennard–Jones and anisotropic Maier–Saupe-like potentials. These particles have the lateral appendage emitting a jet of some substance generated by a certain internal chemical reaction. As a result, such elongated particles are exposed to both the reactive self-propelled force and the torque that provide an additional translational movement of particles and a self-rotation with respect to their geometric centers. It has been found that the chiral active nematics under consideration form time-dependent vortex-like structures with two +1/2 topological defects which are similar to experimentally observed structures in active materials