Phasetransitionsin 2D curvedCondensed Mattersystems

LEOPOLDO R. GÓMEZ

Erlagen

Seminario; Wednesday seminars; 2018

MSS-Institute for Multiscale Simulations

Ordered 2D phases lying on curved backgrounds are not only commonly foundin nature in systems like viralcapsids, pollen grains, radiolaria and others, but also they can beobtained in the laboratory in the form of soft curved crystal orliquid crystal phases by using colloidal particles, blockcopolymers, liquid crystals and other self-assembledsystems.In equilibrium, these phases display regular structures stronglycoupled to the underlying geometry. Althoughexperiments and theoretical calculations have contributed tounveil equilibrium configurations and energetics of topologicaldefects in curved space, dynamical processes like crystallizationand melting still remain marginally explored.In this talk I will present results for the relaxation mechanism of firstorder phase transitions (nucleation and growth)  and second order phasetransitions (Kostelit-Thouless type) in 2D curved systems.