Gamma-convergent projection-free finite element methods for nematic liquid crystals: the Ericksen model

The Ericksen model for nematic liquid crystals couples a director field with a scalar degree of orientation variable and allows the formation of various defects with finite energy. We propose a simple but novel finite element approximation of the problem that can be implemented easily within standard finite element packages. Our scheme is projection-free and thus circumvents the use of weakly acute meshes, which are quite restrictive in three dimensions but are required by recent algorithms for convergence. We prove stability and $\Gamma$-convergence properties of the new method in the presence of defects. We also design an effective nested gradient flow algorithm for computing minimizers that controls the violation of the unit-length constraint of the director. We present several simulations in two and three dimensions that document the performance of the proposed scheme and its ability to capture quite intriguing defects.