Tailoring on Rotational Symmetry of Liquid Crystal Domain Lattices

Rotational symmetry is ubiquitous in nature. However, self-assemblies of soft condensed matter such as liquid crystals (LCs) are entropy-driven, making the tailoring of rotational symmetry challenging. Here, an approach is proposed to control the rotational symmetry of LC domain lattices based on the anchoring condition predesign and the orientational-order inheritance during the nematic-smectic phase transition. By this means, periodic and quasiperiodic LC textures with C_i symmetry (i = 2–6) determined by the preset alignment lattices are realized, and verified by symmetries of diffraction patterns. Topological analysis is carried out to disclose distinct evolutions of orders between disclination line textures and defect wall textures of different rotational symmetries. The influences of anchoring conditions, phase transitions, and mechanical stress on the self-assembly of LCs, as well as the underlying mechanisms and dynamics, are investigated. This work realizes controllable rotational symmetry for large-area self-organized LCs and brings new insights to soft condensed matter.