Molecular dynamics study of flexo-electric effect in the banana-shaped Gay-Berne system

To study flexo-electric effect of nematic liquid crystalline phase, molecular dynamics simulation of a system composed of banana-shaped molecules consisting of a couple of Gay-Berne particles is carried out. A fan-shaped simulation cell together with an external field is utilized to obtain equilibrium nematic phase with bend deformation. An order of the second axis of molecules is shown to be induced by bend deformation of the principal axis of the order. The flexo-electric coefficient is obtained for some bend angles of constituent molecule, which exhibits systematic temperature dependence.