Monte Carlo simulation of the Freedericksz transition in nematic liquid crystals

In this paper we present results of the Monte Carlo simulation of a 2D nematic liquid crystal model in the presence of an externally applied electric field, The molecular interactions were described by the Lebwohl-Lasher Hamiltonian. The boundary conditions employed in the simulations corresponded to the experimental configuration frequently used for establishing the Frank elastic constants. The results are compared with the predictions of the phenomenological Ericksen theory. Preliminary results of simulations of an experimentally important case corresponding to the nematic interacting with a spatially modulated electric field are presented. (C) 1997 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.