Orientational Order of Motile Defects in Active Nematics
Experiments and modeling of active nematics reveal a novel defect-ordered phase, in which motile topological defects exhibit system-spanning orientational order. Such a defect-ordered phase, which has never before been observed in an active system, could enable new material properties such as macroscale flow, self-healing or spontaneous generation of work.
The videos are from DeCamp, S.J., G.S. Redner, A. Baskaran, M.F. Hagan, and Z. Dogic, Orientational order of motile defects in active nematics. arXiv:1501.06228, 2015
(A) LC-Polscope images from an system studied in the Dogic lab, in which extensile microtubule bundles are confined to a 2D interface system.
(B) Trajectory from a computational model of extensile rods.