BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Talks.cam//talks.cam.ac.uk//
X-WR-CALNAME:Talks.cam
BEGIN:VEVENT
SUMMARY:Controlling an active nematic fluid with curvature and topology - 
 Dan Pearce (University of Geneva\, Switzerland)
DTSTART:20190116T140000Z
DTEND:20190116T150000Z
UID:TALK117877@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Dr. Adrien Hallou
DESCRIPTION:Active nematic liquid crystals are achieved experimentally by 
 combining high concentrations of microtubules\, kinesin and ATP. These act
 ive nematic suspensions can then be localized to a 2D interface\, such as 
 the surface of a water droplet suspended in another medium. We will discus
 s the distribution of topological defects within an active nematic liquid 
 crystal confined to the surface of a toroidal water droplet. Due to the to
 pology of the surface\, it is possible to coat a torus in a nematic materi
 al with no topological defects. When the activity of the nematic is suffic
 iently high\, topological defects will spontaneously form\, but they must 
 preserve the net topological charge of the system\, which is zero. Through
  experiment and simulation we confirm that the local distribution of topol
 ogical defects is proportional to the Gaussian curvature. As the activity 
 of the system is increased the reliance on the Gaussian curvature is dimin
 ished and the available area on different regions of the torus dictates th
 e behavior. 
LOCATION:Bryan Matthews Room\, Physiology Building\, Department of Physiol
 ogy\, Development and Neuroscience\,  Downing Site
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR