Abstract
The flow of a nematic liquid crystal in a Hele-Shaw cell with an electrically controlled viscous obstruction is investigated using both a theoretical model and physical experiments. The viscous obstruction is created by temporarily electrically altering the viscosity of the nematic in a region of the cell across which an electric field is applied. The theoretical model is validated experimentally for a circular cylindrical obstruction, demonstrating user-controlled flow manipulation of an anisotropic liquid within a heterogeneous single-phase microfluidic device.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | R1 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of Fluid Mechanics |
| Volume | 996 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 30 Sept 2024 |
Funding
This work was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) via EPSRC research grants EP/T012986/1 and EP/T012501/2.
Keywords
- Low-Reynolds-number flows
- Hele-Shaw flows
- complex fluids
- liquid crystals
- lubrication theory
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