Dual symmetry in bent-core liquid crystals and unconventional superconductors

B. Mettout (1) , Vladimir Lorman (2)

1 PSC - Physique des Systèmes Complexes - UR UPJV 4663
2 LPTA - Laboratoire de Physique Théorique et Astroparticules

We extend the Landau theory of bent-core mesophases and d-wave high-Tc superconductors by considering additional secondary pseudo-proper order parameters. These systems exhibit a remarkable analogy relating their symmetry groups, list of phases and an infinite set of physical tensors. This analogy lies upon an internal dual structure shared by the two theories. We study the dual operator transforming rotations into translations in liquid crystals, and gauge symmetries into rottions in superconductors. It is used to classify the bent-core line defects, and to analyze the electronic gap structure of lamellar d-wave superfluids.

Mots clés: bent-core liquid crystals; uncoventional superconductors; dual symmetry

Domaines: Physique Générale [physics.gen-ph]

B. Mettout, Vladimir Lorman. Dual symmetry in bent-core liquid crystals and unconventional superconductors. Symmetry, 2010, 2 (1), pp.15-39. ⟨10.3390/sym2010015⟩. ⟨hal-00553794⟩