MOLECULAR-DYNAMICS SIMULATIONS OF DISCOTIC LIQUID-CRYSTALS USING A HYBRID GAY BERNE LUCKHURST ROMANO POTENTIAL

We report the results of the computer simulation of a collection of particles interacting via an anisotropic potential proposed by Luckhurst and Romano and modified by scaling with part of the anisotropic well depth formalism employed by Gay-Berne. Using the molecular dynamics technique for 256 particles in the NVE ensemble, the system is shown to exhibit a variety of mesophases, as the temperature is lowered, and these are provisionally identified as isotropic, discotic nematic, a highly ordered fluid phase with some columnar features and a crystal.